We have been extremely happy with MCDS. Our daughter who is in sixth grade now has been there…read moresince she was a baby. All of our experience with MCDS has been nothing but positive. She absolutely thrives there and doesn't want to be anywhere else. They have been so great to work with! Some things that we love about MCDS are the academic rigor, the school/life flexibility, and the nurturing environment.
First, you will find at MCDS that they are usually one year ahead of the public school system. But on top of this, they also place the students according to their needs. So, if they need to be challenged more, they will move them up to something more advanced. Likewise, if the student needs more help in a subject, MCDS will make sure the student gets the individual attention they need to succeed. This is so much better than the public school system where every child has to fit the same mold. We also have an older son who has always been in the public school system. We clearly notice a difference in how MCDS sets their students up for success while the public school tends to not cater to the individual needs. Either the student is advanced or they are not, there is no in between and it is really difficult to move up.
Second, the faculty and administration at MCDS are always willing to work with us to ensure our daughter has what she needs. If we need to take a trip during school or she is sick from school, they have always been good to work with us, to ensure that our daughter has what she needs and gives her the flexibility to make up work. They have also been very open to feedback about how to improve or what programs that we would like to see added. They work very hard to see how they can accommodate these requests.
Lastly, we really appreciate the nurturing environment they create at MCDS. My daughter is so happy there, we couldn't imagine sending her anywhere else. She is growing to be a confident, smart and caring person and we have to say a lot of that is due to her time at MCDS. The teachers really get to know the students and take the time to be a part of their lives helping them grow into well-rounded individuals whether it is joking with them at lunch, helping with pancake breakfast or teaching one of the clubs. They teach the children to respect one another as well as the teachers at a very early age. The older students participate in a peer leader program where they work with the younger children to help them grow and learn. Not only is this a great program to teach the older students leadership skills and responsibility, but it helps provide a good example for the younger ones on how to behave and treat others.
While MCDS is a small school, they are able to offer a nice variety of extracurricular activities for the students at all grade levels. They offer activities like track, soccer, cooking club, outdoor survival skills, drama, and yearbook. The kids really love all of these and it gives them something else to look forward to at school. It helps to build the camaraderie between the students regardless of age and they really support each other. As a parent, we are very grateful for our daughter to have this wonderful experience.
Mendham Country Day School has become a part of our family and we couldn't imagine sending our daughter anywhere else.