Our child had a fantastic experience at Merritt Academy Summer Camp! The program is engaging, well organized, and thoughtfully planned, with themed weeks that keep every day feeling fresh and exciting. We loved that the kids enjoy pool time, arts and crafts, gym and playground time, field trips, daily hot lunch, and snacks all included in a fun, structured environment. It's set up so children can attend all summer without getting bored, and our child looked forward to camp every day. We'll definitely be back! read more

I don't find anything inherently wrong with the school (K-8), but I really don't see the value in this private education, given the cost, that would justify not going to one of the many highly rated public schools in the area. Merritt boasts a low student-teacher ratio, but the teachers still seem to be too overwhelmed to provide the expected level of support for a private school. The playground is small, with no field, track, or courts, and organized playground sports are discouraged (such as flag football, or soccer). They have a STEM program, but it is no better than what is offered in public school. So to sum it up... nothing bad, per say, just not what I was hoping to get from a paid private-school education. read more

Submitted application back in November. School promised to reach out to me in January for a child assessment. Didn't hear anything from them until March so I reached out to them. The answer was my child application was still incomplete. At that point, their admission process was pointless, and I was no longer interested sending my child there. However, they already withdrew my $75 back in November. Why would they take my money when application was incomplete, and they didn't perform child assessment yet. Long story short, they gave out absurd excuses and the whole process was just a mess. Big waste of time and money. Out of multiple schools I applied to, this school was by far the most disorganized, money-driven school. I highly doubt quality of education from this school. I'm glad my child will be attending other school. read more

Warning to parents - my 18m old daughter's teacher at Merritt DISLOCATED her elbow in what was supposedly an age appropriate disciplinary action! Dept of Social Services has investigated and cited Merritt for multiple violations (please view the report linked below). Our daughter's teacher lifted her by the forearm from a seated position to a standing position, immediately dislocating her elbow and causing her agonizing pain. We had to take her to the ER to have her elbow reset, which is an extremely painful process. I know exactly what happened because there is video surveillance of the incident. You do not have to trust my word - the Department of Social Services investigated, cited Merritt for 3 violations, and detailed the incident themselves. Their findings against Merritt are public info: https://dss.virginia.gov/facility/search/cc2.cgi?rm=Inspection;Inspection=135089;ID=9599;search_keywords_name=Merritt%20academy;#Violations Look at the Dept of Social Service's findings (based on their review of the classroom video surveillance) - my daughter TOOK A BOOK from another child, and for that the teacher said "really girl!", yanked her angrily from a seated position to a standing position (immediately dislocating her elbow) and then LEFT HER TO CRY after she was injured. Thank GOD for cameras or we would never have known what happened that day. read more

My 5 year old attended Merritt from ages 3-5, and we absolutely loved it. The teachers are caring and wonderful, the activities are so impressive, and my child absolutely loved going to school each day! I highly recommend Merritt's preschool to anyone! read more

Our 2-year-old daughter has attended Merritt Academy since she was 6 months old, and we would not dream of sending her anywhere else. Our experience has been magical. Merritt is not only her school; it is her second home. We truly feel that her teachers love and care for her as if she were their own child.  Looking back on the past two years, we realize that we as parents have learned as much from our daughter's teachers as she has. With their wisdom and patience, they helped and continue to help us through all the transitions of babyhood and toddlerhood. The environment at Merritt is as enriching as it is loving. Even for babies and toddlers, teachers treat the experience like school -- in the best sense of the word, with endless activities and experiences that are fun, creative, engaging and educational. Every day when we take our daughter to Merritt, we know that she is in a place where she will be cultivated and loved.  On a practical note, the hours and holiday/inclement weather closures at Merritt are better than any day care or school we have heard of. Merritt prides itself on serving working families, and it does. We have a somewhat unusual weekday schedule, and Merritt has consistently accommodated us so that we can maximize time with our daughter. We send her to Merritt first and foremost for the loving and enriching environment, but the practical aspects have also helped us more than we can say. read more

Overall experience We are really happy at this school. We started in the infant room at Merritt Academy and now are in a Toddler room. We have been impressed with the quality and training the teachers receive as well as the Pre-School Program Leadership. Our child loves coming here and as new parents we feel very supported. The classroom activities are engaging and season appropriate. Lots of quality time outdoors, with hands on activities- music and creative movement and we find our toddler dancing and singing all over our house! It really is adorable to see them thrive and learn new things. They read stories daily and the teachers are so animated, our child really loves reading and is very descriptive in his analysis of the story "(points out if a character is wearing a hat, positioning of hands or mimics feelings of the characters in the story... etc.) read more

Our daughter has attended daycare here since she was a little over 1 yo, and the only reason we're leaving is because we're moving out-of-state. The school itself is very organized, all the staff are friendly, and the premises are very clean. At daycare, my child was exposed to so much sensory play and different activities, like moon bounce, water play, petting zoos, magic shows etc. The daycare kids also get to interact with the older classes, which my daughter loved. If you're looking for a daycare, my husband and I can't recommend it enough. And if you have a chance to be in Ms. Liliane's class with Ms. Shauna and Ms. Rosalia, your child is in for a treat. They've been amazing teachers, and we've really seen our child thrive under their care. read more

While this academy has been great in the past, I can now see that it has moved from a caring and nurturing environment to purely academical and profit-seeking school. While academics is great for older kids, younger ones really need a more nurturing and caring environment. What I witnessed is really a lack of regard for the little ones by top administrators and staff. Too much focus on academics and little on making the little ones feel at home and cared for. Cleanliness was a clear problem from classroom to even children. I think this is partly as a result of management and admission of too many children (profit vs caring). read more

Went here for at least 15 years, the teachers were fantastic and the structure in the classrooms was a noteworthy experience. The memories I have from the field trips will surely last me a lifetime. read more

I wanted to follow up with my review. This is the first year we have had my daughter at the summer camp and we could not be happier. The people they have working the camp are top notch, no complaints at all. My daughter has so much fun, she usually falls asleep in the car on the way home she is so tired from field trips, swimming and playing and doing all sorts of events. I would highly recommend Merritt for not only summer camp, but for school as well. My father who lives in Florida saw my daughter for the first time in over a year and was amazed at how much she has changed and grown and matured in the past year and we owe a lot of that to Merritt! read more

Our daughter went to preschool at Merritt and is now enrolled in the private elementary school. It's an outstanding education for any child, at any age. Not to mention this school is a school of character, meaning a core component of the education received is teaching the children how to be a good citizen. The curriculum is advanced and prepares your child for a bright future. There are also many extra curricular activities offered which allows your child to be exposed to many different things (art, cheerleading, tennis, STEAM, etc.). Merritt is a wonderful school, we'd recommend Merritt to anyone. read more

Merritt Academy has been a wonderful fit for my two boys. The teachers and staff are amazingly warm and welcoming to them. They love going to school, and are thriving. Teachers have been transparent about what goes on in the classroom, and really care about the well-being and development of my children. While many people move from an independent school to public school at the end of the preschool years, I plan to keep my children at Merritt for Kindergarten so they can continue to receive the upmost care and education during their elementary school years. read more

The preschool is one of the best in the area. The teachers and administrators have a genuine love for children. There wait list in the preschool is extensive! That alone tells a lot. read more

I currently have my 4yo in Merritt. He is thriving, and loves his teachers, staff, and friends. It's the perfect fit for him. I plan to put my toddler in the school. I like the character education the school provides, as well as the emphasis on keeping a low ratio of kids to staff. This provides a wonderful and personal experience for my son. Plus, the school is about to embark on a capital improvement project in conjunction with the planned new Sunrise facility on the property. Once completed, they will have additional infant/toddler classrooms, a new and larger STEAM classroom, indoor play facility, new music and library space. They will still focus on a low student/teacher ratio. There will be much more parking too! read more

I have two children in Merritt - an infant and a 5 year who has been at Merritt since he was 1. We moved him from another day care to Merritt. We have had an overwhelmingly positive experience at Merritt. A few things to highlight: - They are very well organized. I get daily reports for both my kids (obviously more detailed for my baby). I know when they ate, how much, when they slept, information about upcoming events, etc. If my kid gets hurt on the playground, I get an incident report. If another kid comes down with strep it is posted. It's alot of information but I find it very helpful - especially for the little ones who can't communicate well - The lessons are great and age appropriate. They have a weekly focus for every class - from infants on up. The themes are a combination of topical (e.g., holidays, fall, winter, etc.), educational (colors for little ones, letters, etc. - age appropriate) and value based (e.g., thankfulness, politeness, etc.). Again, all age appropriate but I love that they are organized and the focused repetition really helps things stick. - They also have a lot of special events - visit from local fire departments, santa claus, nature walks, pretend grocery shopping, johnny appleseed dress up, etc. It gives the kids something to look forward to and for the most part they even have the babies participate (like going out to see the firetrucks) which - thought I know they are too young to appreciate what it means - I love that they include them - We've had really great success with the teachers. As with any school, some are better than others but my son has loved almost all of his and we adore the teachers in the infant room. - They are careful and very focused on safety. They have MAT certified teachers and processes in place if there are medical issues. They have a pretty strict system about showing ID and getting exit slips for pick up etc. - They kids spend a lot of time outside - this was a pet peeve of mine at my son's first day care. Preschoolers go outside 3 times a day or go to the gym if its raining or below freezing. They don't just decide to stay in because the teacher doesn't feel like getting out in the cold. - They have great hours that accommodate all schedules. I drop my kids off late and pick them up around 5:30. I know other parents that drop their kids off at 6:30am and pick up at 3. A lot more flexibility than most places. Also unlike a lot of places, they don't close the school just because the local school districts are closed. They make their own determination about when to close due to ice/snow and are open much more than FCPS THe cons: - They are very organized but along with that comes some painful administrivia - a lot of forms to fill out, etc. I can't just drop off diaper creme or my kid's antibiotic in the room - I have to fill out a medication form. I consider this a price I'm willing to pay to have my kids in a place that is organized and focused on safety. - The first reviewer is right - you don't get your money back if you pull kids out of the program early - but they are very clear about that up front - and frankly every other program we looked at had the same policy. Not really a con - I think this is the norm for the market - Parking- Depending on the time of day (specifically 8:30am and 5:30pm) I have had to wait up to 10 minutes or decide to park a block away or more and walk to get my kids. They need more visitor parkign and need to do a better job of managing it to make sure people don't come and spend all day there. This is probably my biggest beef with the school but again I consider it an acceptable price to pay. read more

We are thrilled with Merritt Academy. We have had our children attend K-2, K-3, K-4 and Kindergarden. The teachers and administrators at Merritt are well qualified and extremely caring. We love the international diversity of the curriculum, student body and faculty at Merritt. We are very impressed by the theme-based special events and the extra-curricular activities/clubs such as martial arts, ballet, Spanish and phonics. read more

I graduated from Merritt Academy two years ago and absolutely love it! I started out when I was in 2nd grade and didn't know any English at all! However, with the help of the loving teachers at Merritt I know know English very well and am now in 8th grade. That school was amazing! Everybody was so kind and the teachers helped us with everything. The field trips are the best and the food was great. I miss this school so much, and everyday I wish I was back in my class at Merritt. read more

If you want to waste your money, hire this academy. I hired this academy to look after my 11 year old daughter for two weeks during a month in the summer of 2009 and my daughter cited quite a few concerns. Once concern is that on a few occasions she witnessed camp counselors getting a little too close and friendly with each other behind the bleachers in the gym and we felt it was very inappropriate. One of the counselors failed to renew his/her lifeguard certification and the kids spent the day watching cartoons instead of swimming in the pool as promised by the calendar of events. We were under the impression that they would be participating in creative activities, not watching TV. All in all we paid $770 for a 5 day period to care for my daughter. They require that you pay in advance for the weeks you want them to care for your children. We had to remove my daughter due to an urgent situation and they would not refund the extra $350 I had paid for the week she didn't attend. If you want to waste your money on mediocre overpriced babysitting, then by all means choose this organization. read more