Tuskawilla Montessori Academy

My daughter has attended TMA since 2019 and is in 2nd grade. My son joined her this year in the preschool. This has been a very loving and excellent learning environment. Montessori allows kids to intrinsically love learning rather than being forced to do it. TMA has always been accommodating and helpful.

We started our daughter at TMA this past August and are so glad we did. This was absolutely the best decision for us! She is thriving in Ms. Garcia and Ms. Fernadez’s class both socially and educationally. Montessori offers the full package for children to learn and grow. Highly recommend!

At first we hesitated about this school, It was a hard decision because based on the reviews it was not what we were expecting to be. However, we decided to give them a try and we got lucky, because it has been very good. My kid has thrived, he has become such an independent learner. You, as always in life and like in every other school, need to get involve with the school and with their activities, need to be present for your kids, to ask questions(many questions). This school has been a blessing for my kid. If I had to change something, it would be the communication process. I would like the administration be a little more consistent in the way the information is given (most for those parents who aren't involved). That part have not affected my kid's performance in school so that's why I won't rate that, only giving my opinion about it.

My kid love to go to school. The teachers are very patient. I’ve never worried about my son while he’s is there. I recommend you stop in for a tour and for a shadow day for your kid to experience the school.

I have nothing bad to say about the school and the staff. One of my kids just finished his first year at TMA and we had a good experience. Next school year my other kid will start too. In this school teachers care about the kids, they know their strengths and weakness and they work with the kids on that knowing each kid is different. The principal Ms. Delong is also so involved and you can reach her anytime without any hassle. As others have pointed out, the communication between the school and parents sometimes may be slow. So it is the only that I would like to be different. Other than that this school is so far what we were looking for my kid.

During the past school year I have learned much about the Montessori education through my own research while also learning about Tuskawilla Montessori. The Montessori methods are effective, but this particular school functions within a definite hierarchy and major flaws. The top echelon comprises those students who bring the most money to the school or make the school look more diverse. This is done in two ways. Some have siblings enrolled in the school and/or have been in the school since pre-k or earlier. This group, apparently, can bully, tease, or ostracize others. The owner turns a blind eye to their bad behaviors. This group is entitled. The second group are those students who are quiet, doing everything without complaining, and not drawing any attention to themselves. The school does not need to do anything special with them or be creative to work with them, since they stay in the background. In the third group are the students who have no siblings in the school and arrive at the school in kindergarten or later. Because their monetary value is low, and they are in a position to "prove themselves," their status is low at the school, and this is made obvious starting with orientation where new parents are not told important things (e.g., what building is for aftercare or where the classroom is located). These students are corrected and blamed for any situations that arise. The owner does not care what the teachers' opinions are or what the report cards reflect. The owner is only concerned about what the upper echelon parents think. This analysis is based on personal observations of what has occurred at this school over the past year, and as Will Rogers said, "You can learn a lot by just looking."

There’s obvious favoritism by the owner of this school. Anyone who saw the 8th grade graduation ceremony this year could see that. There were two boys graduating and the owner completely favored the one boy over the other because he had been there longer. She also favors certain families, such as those with multiple children (more money). This school (and especially the owner) have horrible communication with the parents. The owner's main goal is to make sure certain families stay happy, while allowing the children within these favorite families to spit on and bully other kids. Lack of options for private schools might make this place tempting, but with the fact that there is no real leader running this school and the owner believing that anyone who is not one of her favorite families is expendable, it’s not worth the trouble. My child seems to have learned just as much as his public-school friends.

I am currently a sophomore in high school. I was at this school for 10 years, and my sister has been attending since pre-k. Honestly the best years of my life were spent here. All of the teachers worked with me amazingly and I thrived in the hands on, specialized learning. This school has set me up exceptionally well for high school. I have built a very close relationship with all of my teachers and my mother trusts them all with her life. It honestly makes me very upset to see some of the bad reviews posted because, as someone that did go here and attended during covid, I know these accusations to be false. I love the faculty members here and they will always be my family. 💗