Concerns About Honesty and Educational Quality…read more As a parent, choosing the right school for your child is paramount. It's with a heavy heart that I write this review for Stevenson (RLS) Carmel Campus, which my child attended for multiple school years. I believe in providing honest feedback to help other parents make informed decisions. Pros: * The hot lunch program at the school is commendable. The variety and quality of food offered are impressive and appreciated. *Initially, their "specials" program was robust and enriching, thanks to a team of talented teachers. However, now the majority of the lower school special teachers, who were very talented, left the school. Cons: * Honesty and Transparency: One of the significant issues we've faced is with the school's administration. There's a disturbing pattern of misinformation and lack of transparency. This ranges from trivial matters like outdoor activity times to critical aspects of our children's academic and social-emotional experiences. It's been disheartening to untangle these inconsistencies as a parent community. *Educational Quality: When it comes to academics, the school unfortunately falls short compared to other independent institutions. Despite claims of offering differentiated learning, the reality doesn't match up. The one-size-fits-all approach fails to meet the diverse needs of students. *Staff Turnover: The specials program, once a highlight of the school, has suffered due to the departure of many talented educators. This loss has noticeably impacted the quality of the program. Conclusion: While I appreciate the efforts made in certain areas like the lunch program, the overarching issues around honesty and educational quality are too significant to overlook. I had hoped for a more transparent, nurturing, and academically challenging environment for my child. For parents considering Stevenson, I urge you to thoroughly research and look into other options. The well-being and education of our children are too important to compromise. We have a group of post-Stevenson families and the common theme is how thankful we are that we decided to leave, how much better our kids' new schools are, and how much happier our kids are.

After interviewing at several schools, my daughter (then a pre-schooler) was most enthuiastic about…read moreStevenson. She has thrived both academically and developmentally here since Kindergarten and hopes to continue through to the Pebble Beach Campus. Her teachers are passionate and caring, and really get the best out of her. We are excited about the new Administration and Teachers.

Walking into Carmel Middle School sometimes felt like entering a dystopian movie where joy goes to…read moredisappear. The halls were filled with stress, endless rules, and an atmosphere so cold it could freeze sunlight. The administration seemed to operate like emotionless overlords, appearing only to hand out punishments or ignore problems completely. Students were expected to keep up with mountains of work while getting little understanding in return. Asking for help often felt pointless, like shouting into the void. Social drama spread through the school like wildfire, and the environment could feel exhausting day after day. By the end of the year, it felt less like surviving middle school and more like escaping it.

Two of our kids have gone here. Great school! Thank you to all the hard working teachers and…read morefaculty! Special thanks to Principal Morgan, Ms. Wells, Ms. Little, and Ms. Silva!!

By far one of the proudest moments on Friday was watching my little brother graduate. It has been a…read morehard last few years as a family and watching him on Friday was definitely exciting (a new chapter opening up for him and our family). I had always had my reservations about my family moving down to Carmel five years ago but if my family did it all over, I would have not wanted it any other way. The ceremony spoke to what is important at Carmel High- letting students pursue their interests and ensuring they succeed. Where these students are going is impressive-- various UCs, CSUs, military academies, Berklee School of Music, various out of state colleges, vocational and community colleges.... very cool. For a small school they offer 15 AP classes which is ridiculously "hardcore." As an educator and a counselor I was impressed at how much they offered and how many students took these classes. The ceremony also boasted several music performances including a personal pieces by a student who was recognized at the local Jazz festival..... more importantly.... the ceremony continually hit the point that students like coming to this school.. the people here like to teach, counsel and enrich students' lives. The farewells to the principal and AP were very touching.. I want to say thank you for being a part of my brother's life and helping him be a prepared for his next phase in life :-D

Beautiful campus and lovely location for a public high school. My sister loved attending this…read moreschool, though I never had the opportunity. Visiting to pick up my niece is a pleasure. A very lovely campus!

My son has been taking SAT/ACT practice classes with Carmel Academics for the past 3 months and we…read moreare really happy. Rachel has been so helpful and friendly with the coordination & helping us figure out which test to take and Clint has been fantastic with the actual teaching. We fully recommend Rachel and Clint for all your SAT & ACT class needs!

Carmel Academics really helped my son, who was struggling with chemistry. They provided private…read moretutoring for his schoolwork and exam preparation, both in person and virtually. He finished the year with a 4.0, and I don't think he would have achieved that without Clint's help. I highly recommend Carmel Academics.

Michael gave my husband and I the confidence and tools we truly needed to get our 15 month old…read moresleeping in his crib overnight and for his naps. We were so hesitant to do any formal sleep training because we have really enabled car seat naps, contact naps, and nursing to sleep exclusively. We thought there was no hope for our son to sleep independently. The very first day he slept so much better without us or our help. Michael's support and his wealth of knowledge around sleep and babies has changed our lives in just one week! We cannot thank Michael enough. If your baby or child hasn't gotten the sleep they need and you're questioning whether it's worth it, it totally is. Just go for it. Your entire family will get the sleep you all desperately needed!

If you are questioning whether you should call Michael or not, the answer is yes! You are probably…read morelike me, read five different books, tried all these different methods of sleep training. You have slept in months. You're at your wits end. Just do it!! Not every baby is the same and so not every book will work for every child. Michael helped me create a routine and system that works for my baby. He was napping and sleeping longer at night by night 4! My baby went from waking up every hour and a half at night and having to nurse back to sleep to nursing before bedtime and being put down totally awake and sleeping 4-5 hour stretches. He is not even 6 months old and I had been up with him every hour at night for three months. I am sorry I waited so long to get help! No cookie cutter approach here. We have a scheduled phone call every couple days to check in and discuss progress. I kept a journal of my baby's eating and sleeping so we could see the patterns. This program was a God send. I feel like a human again!

My partner and I took our very first surf lessons here. First: I am not a strong swimmer, I have…read morebad experiences with water and the ocean, and I was extremely apprehensive about this experience. It was something my partner was really interested in though, and I figured it was worth it just to try. Now I can say: WOW it was worth it! Our instructor Gavin provided everything I could hope for in a first time surf lesson. He was knowledgeable, encouraging, and above all else - patient. The water was rough and the waves were bigger than I had expected, but Gavin's energy completely put me at ease and made me feel safe in what otherwise would have felt like a terrifying place to be for me. He took his time to explain what sets are and how swim under the stronger waves. He was very intuitive to my comfort levels as well. My partner is much less timid than myself, and he was ready to "dive right in". Gavin was just as patient with my partner's excitement as he was with my anxiety. He made conversation easy with his friendliness and relaxed spirit. Thank you SO much Gavin for everything we learned, for building my confidence throughout our lesson, and for helping us discover a new favorite hobby. Not a moment went by without smiles on our faces. We will absolutely be return customers.

Always wanted to take surfing lessons and when there was a Yelp Elite event I decided to go for…read moreit!! Noah was super helpful in the booking process where you put your name, height, weight, and sex. We were originally going to surf at Carmel beach but surfing conditions were rough there so we ended up at Del Monte Beach in Monterey. Prior to the lesson we were instructed where to meet, come in your bathing suit, and bring your own beach towels. As far as valuables go, they can lock it up in the truck or you can lock it in your car. I was weary but they had someone sitting in their truck so I felt safer. Wetsuits are provided and you don't really feel cold even in that Monterey water! The end of the lesson you can rinse off with warm water they provide which is nice! Kelly was our instructor and he was so patient and kind! They teach anyone from 4 y/o and up! I am in no way athletic and hella out of shape but I had a blast! At the end of the lesson, both of us were beat up by those waves but we stood up!!! It's a great workout that will leave you sore the next day! So I recommend not eating a big breakfast prior. My boyfriend is not a big fan of open water and the ocean but we both felt very safe! I highly recommend trying out surfing at least once in your life! Something to check off my bucket list. I can't imagine you could pick up surfing without instruction so I'm glad we did this!

Zed was just fantastic!!! He taught my kiddo everything he needed and taught him all the routes,…read morewhat each instructor is looking for, what my son needed to work on and woah! My son cleared his tear first attempt!!! Such a blessing! Zed, thank you again!!!

Amazing people, very kind and extremely helpful throughout the whole process. Instructor Dillion…read morewas amazing and helped make sure I understood everything. Offered a great program to take me to the dmv and helped through that process too

It was important to us for our teen to attend an in-person Driver's Ed class and due to covid the…read moreone local to us wasn't operating in person. We drove from Bay Area daily for a week for her to attend Bill's courses, held at York School. It was 100% worth it! He has a way with teenagers that they aren't going to get learning this on a computer screen (& we know they aren't listening to their parents!). He also held a parent morning to go over everything with us and answer questions. And then if you want to take the test in Seaside he will meet them there! We also used him for our daughter's first behind the wheel lesson and then mostly recently after 9 months a lesson before her upcoming test. She said to us afterwards, "I'm excited to take my test, but I'm sad I won't see Bill anymore." Seriously. Thanks Bill!!

Bobby was a terrific instructor. I'm a dad of a 15yo who threw me a curve and asked me to ride…read morealong in her first lesson. I have been driving 35 years and it was instructive to me (we all might benefit from a refresher!). Bobby was patient, calm but firm, and the course was well planned to slowly increase the driving difficulty and put the learner in different situations in a safe manner. Can't say enough. 10 stars out of 5.