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Berkeley Carroll School

3.0 (4 reviews)

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International Charter School of New York - After school at ICS The Jungle Book story performing by students with The Stage Theater

International Charter School of New York

(5 reviews)

Downtown Brooklyn

This school has a high turnover rate with their teachers and principals. This school also lacks…read moreresources for students. For example, if your child is emotional and in need of a counselor they instead keep your child with "diversity instructor" until you come pick your child up. Students in different grades are located in a totally different building. The older kids do not have a school nurse in their building but the younger kids do. Students gave to bring water bottles to school with them because there aren't any water fountains. Students also don't have a yard to play in so they have to play in public either in metro tech or Fort Greene park. All teachers have been very nice but like I said previously, they don't last long here.

We had a bizarre and extremely disappointing experience with ICSNY…read more Last fall I contacted the ED, Matthew Levy, and we had a long and detailed conversation about concerns that I had about my son. I explained we were worried about serious speech issues and some social immaturity I felt would be better handled in a smaller, more personal environment. We discussed having him repeat 1st grade, and he was clear that there would likely be some flexibility with grade level enrollment should we choose to enter the lottery. I also exchanged emails with him about repeating 1st grade, and confirming possible flexibility on grade level enrollment. On the lottery application, we made it clear that despite his YOB, we were applying to repeat 1st grade. We got a spot at the school and received several emails from them indicating he could enroll as a 1st grader. We accepted the offer and uploaded all enrollment materials and were all set to search for apartments closer to ICSNY...... All seemed well until we showed up for the orientation at the end of June. The woman at the front desk was unable to find our name, and insisted we must have been signed up for a different time. We weren't- I checked and double-checked the email, and we were there on the correct date and at the correct time. So there was a certain level of disorganization from the get-go. Then the woman who was to be his teacher (and who seemed genuinely lovely, by the way), took my son to the classroom to do a quick assessment of his math and reading skills. At that time the parents had a*very* informal discussion (I hesitate to call it an orientation, because it was extremely scattered and disorganized) with the principal, Ellen Borenstein. A lot of detailed information was being thrown out in a haphazard way, and her tone, with both the staff as well as the parents, was pretty combative and condescending. At one point, she turned around and snapped at couple of staff/faculty members who were talking to each other, and when she turned back to us, they gave each other a long, meaningful look and a massive eye roll, so I gathered this was pretty standard behavior. I wasn't too rattled by any of this, because I had been warned by a friend that (in her words, not mine) Ellen and Matthew "completely suck" but the teachers were great, and they otherwise loved the school. In NYC, you do what you must, right? When the teacher came out, she was surprised by how well my son did on the assessment, and I explained that he had just finished 1st grade and we were going to be repeating next year because of the speech and social issues. Great? Great. This is when things fall apart. We got home from the orientation on Friday. Ellen left a message later that day indicating she had some questions. I called the number back within 15 minutes of her phone call, and since she neglected to leave an extension, and their automated call service has no option for her, I left a message in the main VM system. On Monday I received an irate message from Ellen in a tone I can only describe as something most of us would reserve for errant teenagers who are actual blood relations. She chastised me for not calling her back (which of course I had) and indicated that my son was supposed to enter 2nd grade based on his YOB. I couldn't call her back myself at that moment, so I asked my husband to return her call and explain everything. Ellen told my husband that I had been "evasive" with the teacher about the fact that my son had already attended 1st grade at another school, which is absolutely absurd. I said, clear as day, "He just finished 1st grade, but we're repeating due to speech and social issues." They went back and forth a bit, with my husband explaining our concerns, and how I had discussed all of this with Matthew, and had also made it clear on the application, but long story short, they refuse to accept him as a 1st grader. She was impervious to any of our concerns, and ENTIRELY unapologetic about the fact that their disorganization and lack of communication has thrown us completely for a loop and upended our summer plans as well as our plans for next academic year. Worst of all was the fact that she was completely disinterested in the well-being of my son, the person at the center of all of this, and offered nothing in the way of useful suggestions or even questions about him or his situation. I accept that they have the right to make the ultimate decision as to grade level enrollment, but am absolutely BAFFLED that they're running a school with so little organization and such poor communication both internally and externally. I also deeply resent the insinuation that I wasn't forthcoming with the woman who was to be his teacher. I have been utterly transparent in every communication I've had with this school. Looks like we're heading to NJ for a year so my son can repeat 1st grade. Would have been nice to know this, back in, you know, MAY. Be warned.

Trilok School

Trilok School

(33 reviews)

Clinton Hill

I am compelled to leave this review for fear that even one more unsuspecting parent would entrust…read moretheir children with this school. We pulled our son out with 6 weeks left bc we felt unstable and disrespected. We tried our best to make this work and engage the administration. We endured months of lies and deflection while multiple very good teachers and assistants left due to an alleged hostile work environment. But when a 2 yr old child was found by their mother on the sidewalk alone at pick up time, the city shut the school down and we never went back. All throughout, we did not receive a single honest, straightforward communication from the founder, Sudha. While well intention as an educator, as a leader, she is next level dissociative and narcissistic. Unreal.

Our child attended Trilok for two years. Our kid was lucky to have some great in-classroom teachers…read morefor most of that time, but unfortunately that's the only good thing I can say about the school. The director is basically absent, and therefore there is no administrative backbone for the school. If you have questions or issues, you have to push very hard to get answers. Communication from the school (including notification of closure) was erratic and last minute, which was extremely challenging for working parents. It also became clear that it was a very difficult place for the teachers to work, resulting in our child's beloved teacher leaving midyear. Our kid was moved to a different class, with a teacher who seemed both overwhelmed, ill-prepared, and was assigning age-inappropriate work. The last few months of our final year there were barely tolerable. The school has also had some instances of safety protocol issues, like when a 2-year-old somehow left the school grounds on their own and was found on the sidewalk by their mother. The school was mostly closed down by the DoH for this infraction for over 4 weeks. This was not handled in a conscientious or thoughtful way by the administration, but instead was handled defensively. We tried very hard to work with the school to strengthen communication and parent-school relationships, but were met with defensiveness, evasiveness, and eventually hostility. I would not recommend this school to any family, unfortunately.

Berkeley Carroll School - elementaryschools - Updated May 2026

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