I enjoyed my time there very much and learned a lot. It was a safe way to explore communication…read moretechniques, to make mistakes, to learn.

Early Risers continues to be a strong club that has successfully migrated to a fully hybrid…read moremeeting. This allows members the flexibility to attend either in person or online. This club has consistently won the top Toastmasters Club award, President's Distinguished, every year for decades. It continues to be a diverse, welcoming and supportive group. Highly recommend joining.

I had a very disappointing experience with Fahey College Consultant. We paid a significant amount…read morefor guidance through the college application process, especially for help with essays and making sure applications were completed on time. Unfortunately, once the process began, the support we expected simply was not there. The student struggled with writer's block and anxiety during the essay writing stage and needed real guidance and feedback. Instead of meaningful help, we mostly received long lists of tasks with little actual support on how to complete them. Communication also became inconsistent during critical parts of the process. As deadlines approached, we expected close guidance and review of the application materials, but the student felt largely abandoned in the middle of the process. While the consultant presents herself very well and is a strong salesperson during the initial conversations, the actual delivery did not match the promises made. For such an expensive service, families expect hands-on guidance, especially when students are struggling. Our experience was that the student was left to manage a very stressful process largely alone. I would strongly advise families to carefully evaluate the level of support they will actually receive before committing to this service.

If I could give 0, I would. Please STAY AWAY from this counselor and her team. She would sweet talk…read moreuntil signing a contract and then from there everything goes downhill. She and her so called team of writers don't do any due diligence on the essays, they would even leave one college name in another college essays and this was after multiple rounds of checking by THEM. She addressed my child in email with another student's name and completely another major and college, so this shows how much thorough she is with her work. DONT WASTE MONEY....she only takes money and then vanishes.

Scheduled me for an interview for a non-teaching position . Confirmed about the position via email…read more. In the interview , told me that they had the non-teaching position filled but were open to interview me for a teaching position. Posting was meant to lure in people Crook was his name , poetic .

I worked at AchieveKids Palo Alto for four months in 2019; I previously worked as a Special Ed Sub…read moreTeacher for 25 years. AchieveKids has several big problems: one is what I call "unwritten or unspoken rules" that you'll eventually figure out in due time, but I'll save your nerves: many of the staff are a "protected class", which means they can act unprofessional, disrespectful, and rude-- and the administrators will do NOTHING (sorry 'bout the caps, but that point is important!). I wish I had known before they hired me that some of my co-workers would disrespect me and treat me like shit and I was supposed to enable and/or ignore 'em. I'm a white male, and two of my co-workers who had major chips on their shoulders-- i.e. loved to initiate power struggles on a daily basis-- where minority females. Some may call it reverse discrimination, but I call it a hostile workplace. I had zero interest in proving that I was better than anyone: I just wanted to work in a professional environment and feel like an equal part of the team. I really enjoyed getting to know the students. I didn't show up at work to be put 'one down' by staff who had less education and less overall experience than me. The other big problem: the kids are emotionally sensitive and set each other off constantly like fiery dominoes. I'd say that 80% of time, staff are putting out those (metaphorical) fires: very little time to teach when most of the time it's a poor man's version of Behavioral Management 101. And most of the staff could benefit from an Emotional Intelligence/Empathic Awareness 500 hour course! Yes, many students and staff can be very nice and be fun to work with, but AK is an emotional warzone. Lastly, I planned to quit AK after I witnessed a co-worker neglect her violent student-- and the principal came and took ME into his office for advocating for "client's rights"(!?!)-- but I was fired first. Wanting co-workers to treat you with respect and advocating for students rights will get you fired!? Yep. The admin staff and system needs a major over haul! Professional ethics are more important than favoritism and petty one-upmanship. Do not work here, unless you like to be hit by students and emotionally beat up by certain staff.

My child was a victim of rumors, which were later proven to be false, and as such was excluded and…read morebullied by his classmates and betrayed by his friends. The administration did little to help him clear his name and preferred to sweep his suffering under the rug instead. Some of the teachers were really good and caring, but teacher turnover is pretty high.

My son attended Kehilla last year, and I loved it. It is a nurturing, supportive school that…read moregenuinely cares about the education and welfare of the kids. I was really sorry that my son transferred out (to Palo Alto High School) where we have had the exact opposite experience. If you have the choice to send your child here, you are fortunate.

I registered my daughter for 10 semi-private sessions. (But last 2 sessions were private sessions)…read moreThe tutors provided essential tips and strategies and helped her improve SAT scores. My daughter achieved the score that she wanted after completing all the sessions. Grayson cares about the students and he is very supportive in helping the students reach their goals.

Zenith tutoring is unbelievable!!! Grayson identified that ACT would fit my son better even though…read morewe hesitated initially. I would have never imagined he could get the perfect score of 36 after only a couple of months. I am so glad we made the decision to join Zenith. I highly recommend Zenith! Their program is really impressive: they characterize the general rules that are easy to understand; and drilled into each problem that my son missed and pinpointed a particular rule that he needed to work on. Thank you so much, Zenith, for improving my son's score to perfection.

This is a great educational place! Just recently renovated in 2012, nearly everything is made of…read morerecycled material! The carpet is made from the fiber of recycled soda bottles and the insulation is made of shredded jeans! Crazy huh? The organization that made the EcoCenter happen is called Environmental Volunteers. Their goal is to teach kids the importance of preserving the environment. They hold many children friendly activities, such as, bird viewing and nature hikes. The EcoCenter is offer High-tech education. They have newly installed touch-screen computers that teach visitors about the marshlands surroundings and other ecosystems found all over the world. Every few months the theme of these educational programs change. The volunteers are also very nice people. They seem genuinely eager to help you learn about what the EcoCenter is all about. If you have a gazillion questions, they have the patience to answer them all for you, as well as, give you a tour of the place. Oh, and it is charge-free to enter, although donations are welcomed.

This organization positively impacts our local children and our community. Environmental Volunteers…read moreis very effective in fulfilling their mission to promote understanding of, and responsibility for, the environment through hands-on science education. What inspired me to learn more about the EV was their vision, that all children will learn about and be inspired by the natural world so that they become responsible stewards of the Earth. The volunteers, some of whom have spent 30 years or more with the EV, make such a difference in the lives of our local kids; and, they help our teachers who are strapped for resources for science-based education. Our children and community need these volunteers who are engaged in innovative environmental science education that improves student learning.

Extremely poor communication from staff members and teachers to the parents. I strongly recommend…read morelooking into other options of schools if you want stronger communication between teachers and parents. There are schools with a similar style that have stronger educational structures. I had a few friends in my circles, looking for a similar educational style for their children, and unfortunately, I cannot recommend this school

I have had the opportunity to see my friend's daughter absolutely blossom since switching from…read moreanother school to this school. She has become a confident young woman in a way that I wasn't sure was possible for her based on some of her special needs. Lydian academy has supported her in her journey every step of the way. Watching her go from being shy, insecure, and feeling like it was impossible to make friends, to attending and even hosting social events has been so amazing. She also had enough confidence to go out and get a summer job working with younger kids on her own. This is the same girl who struggled to go to school on her own before switching to Lydian. While Lydian academy isn't set up to work with kids of all disabilities, it has been the perfect place for my friend's daughter.

We've had a really positive experience with Ascent Autism…read more My teenage son has always struggled socially, especially with starting conversations and knowing what to say in group settings. He's a smart kid, but social situations have never come naturally to him, and he would usually avoid them if he could. After joining the Ascent social peer group, we started noticing changes that honestly surprised me. At first, he was quiet in the sessions, but over time he became more comfortable and started participating more. He's definitely more confident now than he was a few months ago. One of the biggest things we've noticed is that he's more willing to talk to people outside of our immediate family. Recently we had relatives visiting, and instead of disappearing into his room, he actually sat with everyone and joined the conversation. That may sound small, but for us it was a huge moment. The facilitators are patient and supportive, and they do a great job keeping the conversations structured without making it feel forced or uncomfortable. My son actually looks forward to the sessions, which I never expected. We're really grateful we found Ascent and would absolutely recommend it to other families who are looking for support with social confidence and real-life communication skills.

We had an intake interview with one of their people to assess my 17 year old son for a fit in their…read moresocial program. The interviewer was not personable at all. She didn't introduce herself or attempt to engage my son in conversation. She read her script and asked her questions, barely looking up from what I assume was her computer. The 30 minute session was over in 15 minutes and was really just awkward. I am concerned that someone with the social skills exhibited would be adept at modeling behavior that would assist anyone in improving their social skills. The very first thing addressed was the cost of the sessions which while understandable, combined with the lack of introduction or trying to set anyone at ease much less my ASD son, made me feel as though improving my sons well being wasn't their first interest. In a world where everyone has a service to sell, how a potential customer is treated is tantamount. The potential customer should leave an assessment feeling hopeful, not like hopeless. It looks like they have had one review in a year and it was positive. Hopefully that means someone has benefited. However, we will continue to seek services elsewhere.