I worked here for several years and had the opportunity to be part of a great team. The students…read moreand staff are amazing and the work is very fulfilling. Berkeley is also of course a great place to be! :)

As a student of College Internship Program, I have been subjected to quite a few of their…read moreexperiences. One of these reviews said it helped, two others, written by one of the students sons' and his mother, were extremely negative. I'm going to attempt to make this review as non-biased and accurate as I can. It all started out with a lie. I had no idea what to do with my life, so I met up with several staff on their campus who tried to sell me on the program. One of the people was their residential coordinator, and he, among other people, told me things that were untrue. The most prominent one I can think of is saying I could go just about anywhere on the weekends for as long as I'd like. Turns out there was a curfew. This was one of many things they've said. After talking with many of the students, especially the saner ones, I got confirmation I was not the only one they did this to. So I got let in. I ended up going in very last minute, and missed orientation, so I was more unprepared than any other student. I've heard of the staff saying you NEED to attend orientation, and that there are a limited number of people they can let in. Given that people are let in last minute every year, such as myself, I question the truth of that. Anyways. The idea of the program is that they can take all your things and rights/privileges (depending on how you define it) and build you up bit by bit. They took away everything that gave me any sort of independence, as they do to everyone else. Drove me crazy. Sooner or later, they started giving me my independence back, but it was never enough until I got out of the program. There's a reason some students don't succeed at this program and others do. Many don't try, or just flat out refuse to try. This program works best for people who have motivation to do well. They try to motivate the other students, but often the program falls flat on its face. This program gave me friends, and skills I need to survive in the real world. I appreciate it for everything it has done for me, but if I had one piece of advice it would be this: Make sure that your child has the motivation or want to make something out of themselves. Otherwise it's useless and a giant money pit. I'm giving this three stars instead of one, or five, because it is a mixed bag. The price is very high, and you should check out other options as well. That said, it was worth the money to me, and to a handful of other people in the program as well, but make sure your child is prepared for a long, uphill struggle. It's only worth it in the end if you start climbing the mountain in the first place.

Our Journey with our son's learning issues began in elementary school. As time progressed he fell…read morefarther behind. In middle school we put him in a one on one school where he could be succesful as he could learn at his own pace.( Tilden prep). He had gained confidence in that time and was ready for high school, but we could not find a high school which combined working on how to deal with his learning disability and to provide the academic rigor necessary to get him into a college which is what he wanted. He came out of the school with confidence and with skills for self advocacy which has enabled him to be independent in college. His entire demeanor about learning changed in Bayhill as they showed him that he was able to learn and to enjoy it. The staff and director were extremely supportive and tailored to his needs

Bayhill is an amazing school! In my 13 years working at the school, I've witnessed so many success…read morestories, students who arrived with little confidence in their abilities become lifelong learners ready for college and so much more!

As someone who moved to the Bay Area about a decade ago, I've often missed the sense of Persian…read morecommunity I grew up with, attending "mehmoonis" (parties), hearing Iranian music fill our home, and being surrounded by our rich, beautiful culture. When it came time to find a preschool for my son, I dreamed of a place that could offer him that same warmth and connection, and Golestan has given us exactly that and more. The first time I stepped into Golestan's "hayaat" (yard), I was instantly transported to my grandpa's garden in Iran. The laughter, the trees, the care woven into every detail. It's such a lively, loving, and vibrant space where my son learns, plays, makes friends, and creates lasting memories. The teachers are absolute angels, deeply nurturing, creative, and so attuned to each child. From the thoughtfully designed classrooms to the fresh, nourishing food (with ingredients straight from their learning garden!), every aspect of Golestan reflects an intentional, heartful approach to education and community. I feel truly honored for my son to spend his days in such a magical and enriching environment, surrounded by love, culture, and curiosity, and I'm already dreaming of the day my daughter can join. Regardless of your background or heritage, Golestan is a place worth experiencing. I'm sure they'll woo you at "Salaam" :)

It is an AMAZING school. They have created magic at the school and it has become an extension of…read moreour home. The teachers love being there and always have a smile. The happy environment is very accepting of kids and loving towards them. The environment is very conducive to learning and building self confidence for the kids. The Director is probably the most passionate person I have met about education and every detail in the school show it.

We highly recommend Liz Block. Our daughter had some formal testing and evaluation with Liz after…read moresome learning challenges were identified in second grade. The experience was wonderful both for our daughter and for us as parents. Our daughter looked forward to testing sessions and asked when she would be seeing Ms. Liz again. She is very warm and attentive with kids. Liz is highly skilled, patient, observant, and insightful. She is able to explain sophisticated technical concepts in a way that is understandable. And she does an excellent job of summing up findings of her evaluation and setting practical tasks and achievable learning goals for each child. We were extremely pleased.

From the owner: I help children do better in school and feel better about themselves.read more

Amazing services and staff! My daughter goes to Ms CJ and she adores her and looks forward to their…read moresessions every week. Savannah at the front desk is very kind, and helpful.

The therapists and front office staff deserve five stars. Leadership's approach to families does…read morenot. As a parent of twins with developmental disabilities, I understand the importance of attendance. I also understand the reality of managing multiple therapies, medical appointments, school meetings, and life. Over time, repeated conversations about missed appointments, attendance reminders, and signing attendance acknowledgments left me feeling judged instead of supported. The final straw was accidentally leaving one week off a summer scheduling form, which led to another conversation about attendance. It wasn't about that one incident--it was the realization that this philosophy simply doesn't align with how I believe families of children with additional needs should be treated. The clinicians were wonderful, and the front desk staff were always professional and kind. My disappointment lies with leadership and the culture created by these policies. Families seeking pediatric therapy need partnership, empathy, and flexibility. Unfortunately, that wasn't our experience, and we chose to take our children elsewhere.

After leaving my son's other middle school this was so much better. There was this cool ass mother…read morefucker named Memphis Razack and made my sons week during the sick ass Washington DC field trip. Luxury hotel and cool sights as I saw with the different photos my son sent

I volunteered at King Middle School through the Be-A-Scientist program when I was a graduate…read morestudent (Ph.D.) in geophysics (volcanoes and planetary interiors) at the University of California, Berkeley. I participated in the program during autumn semester in 2015. As part of the program I was assigned a group of four 7th grade students to bring the scientific method to life through interactive and hands-on experiment design and execution. We, Be-A-Scientist volunteers, came in on a near weekly/bi-weekly basis to make progress in each student's project. The week's session was always in the theme of one of the steps of the scientific method. This way by the end of the semester the students had designed and performed their own scientific study/experiments according to the scientific method. Each session we went over each student's project discussing it as a small group so they could get feedback from others in the group and hone their communication skills. They also wrote up what they were doing, sometimes including drawing graphs/plots, and if it was a week dedicated to the 'experiment' step in the scientific method they performed experiment trials/experiments. I enjoyed that we were able to develop an experiment for each individual student and thoroughly enjoyed the experiments my students decided upon. One tested different substances on slices of bread to see which generated the most bacteria, one wiped different surfaces with Q-tips to see which yielded the most bacteria, one tested different potting mixtures to see which was best for growing plants, and one dried different fruits to see which one evaporated the most moisture. Some of the results from these projects, such as Q-tips wiped on the wall having less bacteria than Q-tips out of the container, were down right shocking. All of the students in my group were great, expressing mush enthusiasm for the task(s) at hand and each had their own distinct inquisitive style. I have only good memories of my time volunteering with these students and at King Middle School. If you are a visitor here, like I was, there is a main office where you need to sign-in when you arrive to the school and sign-out when you leave. This way the school can keep track of who you are, why you are here, when you are here, and what classroom(s)/teacher(s)'s classes you are visiting while you are here. We were allowed to use only the faculty/staff restrooms when were volunteering.