We are thrilled with our experience at Challenger School (Harwood Campus) this year! Our son is in the 4-year preschool program, and the growth we have seen in him is remarkable. A huge part of this success is due to his incredible teachers, Ms. Lourenda and Ms. Samita. They are a great team--warm, attentive, and dedicated to the students. You can tell they truly care about each child's individual progress. They have created such a disciplined yet joyful environment where our son feels confident and excited to learn every day. Academically, the curriculum is fantastic. Our son is currently learning vowel blending, which is a good achievement for his age! It is wonderful to watch him building such strong reading skills so early on. Thank you, Ms. Lourenda, Ms. Samita, and the entire Challenger Harwood team for giving our son such a strong foundation. We couldn't be happier with our decision to send him here! read more

This is an excellent school. The pre-kindergarten teachers Miss Samita and Miss Lourenda take great care of the children, nurture their curiosity to learn and explore, and guide their social emotional learning. My son has achieved great progress in many aspects since he got enrolled. Miss Dan and Miss Kari always warmly welcome the children in the morning when they arrive in the school. Miss Sukaina at the office is always willing to help us with any queries and the principal Mrs Panesar has been sharing good feedback to the parents. read more

Don't come to this school for 3rd grade! The new teacher Ms. Decerajh is horrible and zero experience to kids! She is extremely mean and over sensitive to kids! Kids are put out of classroom everyday for minors! One boy was forgotten to be called back twice which made him stayed outside over 45mins, twice! She doesn't allow kids to express themselves and be a creative thinker! All she expects is a piece of wood with ears but no mouth. If you are looking for a person to torture your child, she is the perfect one. She is somehow a boy-hater. Only punish boys never girls. She has no empathy, no common sense to be a human and no skills of communication. Worst teacher ever! read more

Can i give no stars here? Challenger as a school has an awesome cirriculum. This campus especially has there own ways of following it though!! It feels as if this olace a daycare for elementary kids. Be away from this campus as the staff takes no responsibility of teaching our children or nurturing their minds. The management is the worst with having no idea what is happening in the classrooms. (Or i think they just put a blind eye to cover up the flaws). This review definitely should be considered before taking a tour here. read more

This is an excellent school. The pre school teachers Miss Ramya, Miss Anu and Miss Lorenda take great care of the children and help them learn in a safe, nurturing environment. I have another kid in 4th grade Miss Bagchi's class and we have a very positive experience. Miss Sukaina at the office is always willing to help us with any queries and the new principal Mrs Panesar has been making some good changes. read more

Worst school on the face of earth! This place and ppl scarred my daughter for life. They constantly accused her something she was never aware of. They always side the rich families. Teachers are bullies. Wish I never sent my kids to this horrible place. Shame on the entire school and all their branches. All parents who have given this place 5 stars are all preschooler's parents. They run a decent preschool because of wonderful teachers only. Management is horrible. Once your child enters kindergarten the race begins. If your child makes a single mistake they are treated horribly for ever. It's no less than a prison for kids and staff.. I never want even drive by this place.. read more

My child has been going to this school for over 6 months now (Pre-K). The entire staff and administration is very friendly and helpful. They have sturdy pickup and drop off rules in conformance to covid guidelines. My child has been thriving here and I see that the teachers take an effort in teaching the kids, reminding them of courtesy and their responsibility. Our child loves going to school and loves his teachers. We have interacted with the teachers from the 3 year and 4 year programs and they are all amazing! The campus is beautiful and play area facilities look great! Also, their uniform is really cute! Can't wait for my second one to start school here soon! read more

Director of preschool showed complete disregard for my child's health. We enrolled my son into preschool, starting fall of 2013. We were informed that starting this year kids enrolled in preschool have to wear uniform Mondays and Tuesdays. This way they will get all the kids going MWF, TTH, and M-F to buy the uniform. I guess $1500 per month is not enough for school and they need more money from selling uniforms. Anyway, we bought the uniform, but it is 70% polyester. My son has severe food allergies, and eczema. After wearing that uniform he developed rush all over his body. I had to apply steroid cream to make it better. We went to see his pediatrician and she wrote a note to the school, saying that he cannot wear polyester, and asking to excuse my son from wearing uniform due to his medical condition. Director of preschool refused to excuse my son, and insisted that he wear uniform to school. Of course, we withdrew my son from the school immediately. read more

Great school with very respectful and knowledgeable teachers and staff. I had a great experience speaking to the administration and was impressed with the campus and how much the students are learning. Highly recommend! read more

I sent my two kids there. Very beautiful campus. It was great at first but declined. There is the constant change of teachers. New inexperienced teachers replaced experienced ones. Admin is not friendly or open to ideas but has very authoritative attitude. No technology in the class or many hands-on activities. No field trips or computer skills except Logo. It's all whiteboard, textbooks and paper. Classes started shrinking when families left. Now it's only up to 4th grade. We left too for Stratford School nearby that has all the things Challenger doesn't. read more

Right now, Challenger is offering 15% off with a referral, which makes it an exceptional bargain compared to other schools in the area. They also have a detailed website, so I encourage you to go in for a visit and check it out. http://www.challengerschool.com/ice/14-127.01-17_ReferralTuitionDiscountFlyer_R1.pdf Challenger is a vast improvement over all of the schools we have enrolled our daughter in so far. We are a touchy-feely family, but I am no longer a believer in play based, emotional, preschools. Challenger has forever changed my attitude about early childhood education. At first, we were afraid of 'grinder' schools, and we thought challenger was that type of school, but we were so wrong! Our daughter enrolled in the 3 year old program in 2015-2016, and she loves it! Our family is excited about the prospect of keeping her here for another 3 years. There are some bad reviews on yelp, but that has not been our experience at all. Challenger cares deeply about academics, even at Preschool. Every kid in our class seems to LOVE learning. Our daughter feels just as safe and loved as she did at her old school, but now, she is so excited to LEARN. She is thriving at this school. Emotional and social development AND learning must go hand in hand, and our daughter is getting ALL of her needs met at this school. I cringe when I think about what might have been if we remained at our old school. Everyday she brings home her work, and it's great. The curriculum is absolutely phenomenal. Quality versus Quantity. The kids learn to read in the 3 year old preschool class, but they also learn about American history, plant science, anatomy, earth science, logic, math, and much more. They sing lots of great songs. They hop and skip around the class. They give 4 comprehensive assessments per year, and the teachers rate your child on 34 different metrics covering areas like responsibility, participation, motor skills, reading, phonics, math, and logic. They don't have a garden or play-duh, but lucky for us, we have that at home. On our daughter's birthday, her mom and I got to come to school and all of the kids sat down and listened while our family talked about what makes Amelie special. Then everyone lines up to give her hugs. They had a very charming Christmas party with signing, art work, and Santa. Her teachers are very encouraging and they go out of their ways to tell us how well Amelie's doing. They give out 'parenting' classes to help parents keep their kids motivated and focused and happy at school and at home. They send little books home (for 3 year olds) to read to their parents. Challenger has gotten a reputation for being overly rigid. My wife and I can be a bit 'controlling' and 'nitpicky', but we have never had any trouble communicating with the school. Everything has been super smooth. In our class, everyone has birthday parties where all the kids show up. The birthday parties are huge and a lot of fun. This school is just the total package, and looking ahead, the curriculum appears to get better and better, at least through 1st grade (so far as I can tell). read more

Very good school. My son has been attending this school, and we are so happy to have so dedicated teachers and friendly staff in all these years. read more

I have to be honest. When my wife and I were looking for a school for our 3 year old daughter, I was skeptical about touring Challenger School. I've heard that it is a really academic school and the children don't have fun. We had just taken a tour at another school (Challenger's competetor) and we drove by Challenger. We didn't have a tour scheduled and just walked in to the office and asked if it was possible to take a tour. The office staff was so nice and the director gave me a tour immediately. She took me to a classroom and before I walked in, we heard music and children laughing. When she opened the door, the children were singing and dancing. Not what I was expecting at all. My wife couldn't get over the fact how cute they all looked in their uniforms. The director showed me the all day class schedule and the only academic part of the day was 40 minutes phonics and 30 minutes math in the morning. The rest of the day was music (which they do all day), dancing, art, crafts, science, drama, outside play (3 times a day), games, stories, and logic games. Not at all what I imagined. The director spent about 1 hour and 20 minutes with us. She took us to a 4 year old classroom and then to a kindergarten classroom. We were so impressed with their curriculum. The director said that Challenger has been around for 50 years and they've stayed strong because their program works. read more

Too expensive application fee compared to other better private schools and Admin is not friendly.

Great school! Excellent staff! Our sons' been enrolled here since 2015. We plan on continuing his education at Challenger Harwood. If you need to enroll a preschool aged child in 2016 or 2017 please message me because with my refferal we can both earn 15% off tuition. read more

This school is great to get your kids ready, our son went for pre-school and he was able to get into the public Kindergarten with the fact he missed the cut off date. We enrolled our daughter and she is learning so much, this is the best pre-school for any kid. If you are interested in enrolling, message me and we can save both 15% on the tuition. read more

Love this school! My daughter goes to preschool here and in a few months she is able to write numbers, alphabets and lot of words, and of course read them. Teachers are patient and pretty good. School staff is also very nice and polite. Message me if you would like a referral for a 20% tuition discount (for any location). read more

Beware of this campus... there is bullying which neither the teacher nor management can handle it. They do not have a bullying policy in their handbook and they regularly tolerate name calling to an extent that even challenger staff did name calling to my daughter. She returned home with nail scratches, kicking backpack, stomping on her feet, tripping, pinching at lineups and was targeted by the bully who's popular prekindergarten - on campus teacher's daughter. This teacher is more a dedicated challenger staff than a mom who cannot pay attention to her own child's behavior and her needs. This started at third grade last year when they joined the campus from a public school where they were possibly kicked out and went on fourth grade since nothing was done to stop it. The fourth grade teacher is terrible as she literally yells at kids for petty reasons while did nothing when bullying happened in front of her. In fact she lied to us and gave false incidents that only encouraged the bully. Think twice before enrolling further... bad values, distrustful staff and poor elementary education. Would not recommend this school ever.We are glad that we have found a much better school and safer environment than it was at Harwood campus. read more

Please stay away from this Challenger campus. Please note - this review is only for this Challenger HARWOOD campus. The other campuses are really great. This campus has deteriorated over the years. All the good staff have left.  Administration is the worst.  Principal and Preschool Director lack professionalism. Principal does not know how to manage a school. He is the worst I have seen in all years. They hide things that happened to your child at school and try to handle it themselves. Staff is very rude to kids and treat kids really bad and bring down their confidence. Lot of bullying at school. Teachers are all new and have no qualification to be a Challenger teacher. read more

I love this school. There was an incident at the beginning of the year (at pick up time) and when I addressed my concerns they took it very seriously and made changes to the process and things improved dramatically. My daughter is so much more confident then she was when she started. She is on the younger end of her class and she is great at singing, her numbers and alphabets. She is in the preschool program and the teachers are so sweet and caring Only thing is, this school is expensive (understandably) without the referral discount. Please message me if you want to enroll your child (in preschool ONLY) and we can both get 15% off. It makes it much more affordable this way read more

This school is the worst. I used to be a student there (now in 8th grade in public school) and it was the worst 3 years ever. I started in 1st grade and the teacher (let's call her ms. k) was always calling me out for minor issues than any first-grade child would have done. Here's an example that happened to me: I was on the playground, and I didn't hear ms. k blow the whistle to come back. after five minutes I realized that my classmates weren't there, so I checked my classroom. The teacher immediately yelled at me on why I wasn't there, and I told her sorry and I didn't hear her blow the whistle. She demanded me to go to the office and have a "talk" with the principle. Keep in mind, I was SIX years old here. She always sent me (not any other kids) to the office and this also made me lose class time and not learn the material needed for tests. Second grade was ok. No major issues, the teacher was kind, some bullying though. Third grade was where the big problems started. A new girl joined our school, and we became friends. While this was going on, someone in our class wrote anonymous notes to almost everyone, including me. Right away, the new girl assumed that I wrote them even though I didn't. The staff and teachers refused to investigate on who wrote them and let the kids bully me and let them call me names and say that I wrote them. The girl and I stopped being friends but she continued bullying me. She called me mean names, brought my sibling (who was 3 at the time) into the conversation and called her bad words, and actually ripped a hole in my uniform sweater. The teacher and principal knew about this but didn't act on it, and let her bully me to the point where she physically harmed me like scratching, shoving, and kicking me. By the end of the year, the school still didn't do anything and were always on her side because her mom was friends with the principal and taught preschool there. In fourth grade, the girl kept bullying me and our new 4th grade teacher (ms. a) straight up ignored it. I told ms. a what the girl was doing and when my parents asked her if I told her about it, she said I haven't mentioned anything. She lied. During the science fair, the same girl scratched me where i could see blood. The principal was there but he didn't talk to her at all and refused to give me a bandaid. I left the school a week after because that was just unacceptable. there were so many more problems with the school like the lunch lady would force me to eat all of my lunch and kept me in while the other kids were outside to finish my lunch. The principal and teacher called me to the office for the dumbest reasons. The notes and learning was very boring with no experiments for science, no field trips whatsoever. the teacher would read out of a binder with no enthusiasm and almost felt like she was being sarcastic at times. do not waste your money and time at this school. read more

15% discount for any students attending the preschool program. You just need to message me I do not normally write reviews about schools, but this school has Exceptional preschool teachers and staff. My daughter attends the preschool M-F and she always asks to go back for the weekend. The place is very friendly and educational. My daughter has perfected already her motor skills by using crayons and coloring. She know all the phonics and can read basic 3 letter words now. My daughter will return next year to complete the preK program. If any parents have any question you can message me read more

Love this school! Great programming. The school really works with the parents as a team to give the best education to your child. Message me if you would like a referral for a 15% tuition discount. read more

The best decision we have ever made! We really like this campus not only because it is close, but because the staff and factulty are outstanding. If you've never been to a Challenger School, i will say that academics are top priority. For this reason it seems like a lot of parents get frustrated when they try to transfer their children in at any level beyond kindergarden. Our kindergardner is reading at a 1st grade level and our 1st grader is almost at the 3rd grade level. When our friends come over with children of similar age, our children are far better readers, more advanced in math and socially more outgoing than anyone we have ever seen from any of the public schools. If i have any complaints, it is that there is a lot of work for the kids (my kids love it though) and there is very little emphasis on athletics or extra curricular activites. We may consider moving our children as they approach 5th or 6th grade, however this is mainly due to the limited demographics within the school as well as the very small school enrollment. read more

My daughter went to this school for 5 years. In the beginning we were very happy with the preschool and kindergarten. This place was like another family to us, seeing us through the pregnancy of our second child. But everything changed once she got into elementary level. Once my daughter started having some struggles in a certain subject I had asked if they could send home some blank worksheets from daytime class so I can help out at home to help her get stronger in a certain subject. This was denied, you are not allowed ANY extra help at all; no blank worksheets no completed tests to re do or review at home to help, nothing. The response we received was "if she doesn't get it in class then she is not Challenger material" wow! This threw me for a loop. So we pressed on and finished out the year but man, it was a FULL TIME job trying to re-create what was done in class to help her at home. Trying to make pre- tests to study from going off of 2 sentences of "boardwork" is really crazy. When I again addressed the issue that she still needs help, we were told that she can get 1-1 time with the teacher during boardwork from 750-815am. Let me explain what that entails because its laughable to think that is "helpful". Boardwork is when the kids come in at 750, put their backpack in the back, lunch in the cupboard, take the chairs down and sit and copy or do the questions on the board onto a piece of paper. While this supposed 1-1 time is happening, kids are sloshing to the classroom laughing and talking and making noise putting their things down, the teacher is trying to get everything set up for the day and has her own items to tend to. This "help" turns into a few minutes of chatting at the kids desk, it is NOT 1-1 quite only with your child time. In the end we were heartbroken that Challenger didn't want to help our daughter, even though we had spent over 75k by 2nd grade and our daughter finished the year with a really good grade..... we were still told if we continued there that she would have no outside help during the following years. On the flip side, I see a difference in my daughter just from doing the summer program at a comparable school. Oh BTW, don't ever think you will get the teachers phone or email (Nor the other parents in the class, Chasllenger wont share ANY info at all), the only way your allowed to contact the teacher is to take time out of your day/work, schedule a "meeting" and sit down to talk. I find that just crazy, it should be a bond between teacher and parent, a group effort for the best outcome. Her new school, the summer school teacher(who on day one handed out her email address to ALL parents) replied to my email at 9:02pm on HER own time to say how well my daughter is transitioning. I mean come on the difference is night and day. I also went on a field trip (first one for my daughter as Challenger doesn't do them) and the teacher handed out her cell phone number to the parents for anything they needed with NO hesitation. In all Challenger wants this, they want those perfect students who are just natural followers that just excel and don't need anything so their stats look good. Academically it's a great school but you better pray to god your kid will NEVER need any help because you wont get any(if your kid is struggling that means their STATS go down). Do yourself and your child a favor and don't make the same mistake we did in thinking that they care about the children, they care about the STATS. On a final note so parents don't think I'm the only one, 11 out of 27 kids are moving on to the next grade ..... take a wild guess where the rest of the kids are?? ELSEWHERE! If I can save one kid.....then this post was worth it. read more

Challenger Harwood has been a huge part of our lives for last 9 years. Challenger has always been known for it's outstanding preschool-KG program and overall top-notch academics program. My experience has been nothing less than that. Challenger has helped my daughter to grow not only academically but personally by integrating strong values, self esteem and self-discipline. Challenger is known for their challenging academics and curriculum, and the teachers were excellent and made it interesting to learn and face challenges from an early age. The elementary and middle school teachers have been really good. Our important criteria such as the safety of the child in school, attention of the teachers and good education standards were very well met or exceeded by Challenger. It was reassuring to see the teachers, administration and the overall system were successful in motivating as well as supporting children to reach higher goals and enhancing their learning of the subject matter in the process. There were plenty of opportunities for the students to exercise their talents and get recognized in front of other colleagues through competitions such as Spelling Bee, Geography Bee, Science Fair, Speech Contest, Young Author, Art Fair, and Math Contest. I would definitely recommend Challenger School to everyone, and it is with no doubt one of the best schools in the Bay Area. read more

I take back my former review. It is miserable at this campus. Enrollment is dwindling. Staff turnover is high. Administration lacks professionalism. Some teachers who have been there for a while have gotten so comfortable that they don't put in much effort anymore. They just hand out worksheets and test papers. No hands on experiments. Preschool is okay, elementary is average, and don't even think of putting your kids in the middle school. Public schools are even better! read more

Our son has now been a part of Challenger family for the past 1.3 years. He joined pre school and is now in pre-k. I wanted to take some time and provide feedback for this school, for prospective parents. The school is great. For pre-k, a special mention goes to Miss Megan and Miss Ting who were simply awesome on a daily basis. Our son not only grew in personality, but also had fun while doing so. Overall, teachers are fantastic and the principal Miss Sukena is very dedicated and helpful. The daily schedule is well designed for the kids to learns and have fun at the same time. They track the progress of the kids and provide constant feedback on the child formally and informally. Overall, we as parents feel a marked progress in our child, both socially and academically. The school also has a 15% referral discount for enrollment for both parties as well (for pre school full day program only), so some discount is always welcome.If you are thinking, of getting 1x1 feedback before you enroll your child in the above program, I can provide more details and help out in your decision, so feel free to reach out to me. Hope this is helpful. read more

Lot of reviewers here are offering 15% discount. I will offer you 100% discount - just don't waste your money here. You expect top class education and all round development for your child - you will find neither here. We had our child at this campus from 1st till 4th grade. Things were fine until 2nd grade. Towards ending of 3rd grade the management changed. The new management is incompetent and untrustworthy. My child experienced bullying at this campus and management showed utter incompetency, bias and lies in handling the situation. The 4th grade teacher was unqualified and she would read out material from a binder - that was how this class was taught. Challenger's method of education has emphasis on memorization, rather than knowledge. Cramming curriculum with content from higher grades and lack of real teaching, does not raise the bar at all - they breed students with shallow depth yet seemingly good at reciting the memorized information. As an example, in a science "experiment" the teacher got different types of rocks to show them to the class (only showed, didn't pass them around). In another one, the teacher got different sizes of sponge sheets to show which one absorbs more water. This is 1st grade content shown to 4th grade kids. This is the quality of so-called science demonstrations. Compare this with the common curriculum in Union school district public school where groups of students themselves built a roller coaster track in the class using card paper and tape, as an experiment to learn about potential and kinetic energy. In Challenger, the same topic was only read out by the teacher from a binder and wrote notes on the board. Consider that during the recent Solar eclipse, Challenger students were locked up in classrooms, and Union school district provided solar glasses to every kid and allowed them to watch the eclipse. Think again - in which environment will kids enjoy learning science ? (my daughter recently changed from Challenger to our public school (Guadalupe Elem) and we are finding that in many ways, the public school is better). Challenger has no field trips ever. The public school had a field trip to Monterey Bay aquarium to learn about ocean's ecosystem too. I also want to clear up any myths about the science fair in Challenger - this is an exhibit of individual experiments done by students and their parents - teachers do not perform science experiments or teach anything in this. You pay so much money to put your kids to Challenger to raise the bar, but your kids are not enjoying to learn and are only becoming good at memorization. Save your money and find a better school. Give your child a better environment where they enjoy learning, and get an all-round personality development. Challenger is all about memorization, they do not encourage friendships and do not ever want parent involvement in the classroom. read more

I cannot say enough about this school. Our little girl started here for preschool and by the time she started Kindergarten, she was reading Dr. Seuss books cover to cover! The campus is clean and well maintained, with the world's greatest security guard, Mr. John who watches the kids like a hawk. The teachers are wonderful, providing personalized learning for each student. The kids learn discipline, responsibility and much more. One of the great things for working moms and dads is the before and after school program. We were able to drop off our daughter in the morning before class started if needed, and pick her up by 6. She took a drama class on Monday's during after school care and had all her homework done! Great for the working parent. We would still be at this school if we had not moved out of the area. Absolutely wonderful, top to bottom. read more

We send both of our children to Challenger and we are thrilled with the quality of education. We need help though. If you are new and refer us, both you and I get a 15% discount on the tuition. It's a great program to lower the cost for the both of us. Challenger wants to drive increased enrollment and are offering this program to do so. Either mention my name when you register, "Carmen Cooper" or message me and I can help you get it set up. Challenger on Harwood has an excellent education program for preschool and elementary kids. We have both of our children enrolled (pre-school & 2nd) and we are delighted with the quality of education they receive. If you want your kids to get a leg up on their education, then this is the place to send them. read more

This is one of the best investments ever for your child! I put my 3 year old daughter into the preschool program thinking that it's all fun in play, but little did I know they learn sooo much here 2 days a week, for 3 hours each day. I believe it was $320/month but she left knowing all her alphabet and sound and vowels as well as songs and how to spell her name! Great program and curriculum for starting your child's first step in life! The teacher's and staff are so wonderful and understanding. read more

We were skeptical about Challenger initially for our daughter since some reviews said they were extremely academic and kids wont have enough free play/non-academic activities. We decided to give it a try and enrolled our daughter in the early pre-school class and she is now ready for kindergarten this fall. In the last year and half, we have seen great improvements in her. We love the confidence she speaks with her peers friends and parents. I must really thank the wonderful and dedicated teachers @ challenger, hardwood campus. Ms Megan was her first teacher. She was very caring and made our daughter feel loved and cared. In Fall she was in Ms Ting's and Ms Jessica's class and I started to see big improvements in the way she speaks, thinks and expresses herself. Now in Ms Ayesha and Ms Nhuco's class, we are seeing her grow to new heights. Both the teachers are really nice, care for kids and help them give proper feedback and enhance their skills. What we like about Ms Ayesha is that if the kid is advanced or showing interest in learning more, she supports their skill level. This is what we expect from a private school. They also rotate kids groups to work with kids of all skill levels. They are also super creative about their art projects and class concerts. This class had the best winter concert too!! there is a very good combination of academics and other creative things too. All of this credit goes to the hardworking teachers! Overall very happy with the program and plan to continue our daughter for the coming Fall kindergarten program as well. read more

We are moving out of town and the saddest part is leaving Challenger-Harwood. Our daughter has spent two years here. With Challenger she has exceeded the California State Standards, developed quality friendship's and I am secure with her safety at all times. If this is an option for you, I highly recommend it. read more

Challenger school is the best investment i have made for my daughter. My daughter began in preschool with Challenger and is now in the 6th grade. The school has a very strong academic program, as well as teaching values and independence. My son went through private Catholic school from Kindergarten through High School and although each child is different i can say that my daughter is receiving a far superior education than my son. I highly recommend Challenger School. read more

As a Parent this is my sincere review . My son currently attends the Pre K Program in this school . I can see a vast difference in his learning skills as well as overall development from the time he started attending this program - I would definitely like to credit this school and also his teacher Ms.Ayesha for all the effort & her passion in teaching .Outstanding job - thank you ! read more

My grandson's a 5 yr old in full day Kinder at Challenger Harwood. He spent the previous 3 yrs at Action Day which was a wonderful experience with good teachers and lots of social stuff. His academic progress here is astonishing. We raised 3 boys in Cupertino, but this school is different. He has an after school drama class, that instills confidence and is loads of fun for all the kids. He has after school soccer run by a degreed PE teacher. Super guy and good leader of the activity. This is a great school. What does it lack? From my view only a second language learning class which is Asian. I would like him to get exposure to Indian or Chinese early, because that's where the jobs are going to be for him. They do have Spanish. He get's outside playtime and socializing with his friends in the Flag football league and the mini mite ice hockey team. It is so expensive, but the best value in education that I know of in the South Bay. read more

Fifth grade for my child has been going really great so far. I was horrified to hear from other parents about the things that went on in the fifth grade class last year. I was almost going to withdraw my child out. On visor card day, we were really happy to find out that one of the most respected teacher will be my child's teacher in fifth grade this year. This teacher is knowledgable, kind, dedicated and very organized. She even called me to discuss my child's progress on a weekend. My child is loving school because of her. I am glad that Challenger takes parents' concerns and act on them. Not all Challenger campus is similar but this one is great. read more

Director of the pre school told me that my son was not part of the right target demographic. she started by stating that he was too tall and that the teacher's were only equipped to deal with students who were of the Asian / Indian, the school's target demographic....The Director informed me the school was 60% Indian and 30% Asian and that my caucasian son was too tall to be with the 3 year olds and that the school was not set up for caucasian boys to succeed. Too energetic and teacher's not up for the challenge. I am a HUGE advocate of multiculturalism. I have my Masters in Education and served on National committees, taught multicultural leadership in an MBA program and managed a multicultural residence hall.......and this by far was the most blatant discriminatory act that I have ever experienced. It was appalling to me and very sad that any child would be denied education because of his / her gender, ethnicity and height of all things. I was told that 2 siblings of the target demographic were on the waiting list and they were giving my son's spot away........ read more