Friends School In Detroit

My family is new to Detroit, having moved from the West coast. My daughter was always top of her class at her schools back home, rarely challenged, and often bored. Their solution to this was to move her up a grade... After being at Friends School for the second year, she has learned so much is completely challenged, never bored, and now studies for those A's! The teachers are amazing! They engage every student, making each and every one of them feel important, always eager to help and even more incredible; they are always reachable. It is like family at Friends! Having Quaker values is such a wonderful thing. You will find nothing but care, love, kindness and empathy at this school. It all begins from the first step through those doors, meeting the kind admissions director, touring the school, and having that welcoming interview with the Headmaster. We were impressed from day ONE! We live listening to our daughter talk about school each and every day- about how much she loves it & seeing how not only she, but each & every student love it so much they never want to leave! How many middle school students do that? Friends is the happiest place for learning in Detroit!
—Submitted by a parent

My kids love it here at Friends. We lived in downtown Detroit when we first enrolled our kids. Now we are almost an hour away and still chose to send our boys here. They would not be happy anywhere else. Our eldest son had a reading challenge when he started 3 years ago. Now he is reading 2 years above his grade level! All thanks to the wonderful teachers and staff at Friends for taking the time to attend to our son's needs. I recommend this school to any parent that needs to know their child is safe, secure -and learning beyond comprehension!! Visit Friends and see for yourself! Your children can have a 2 day visit at the school, what better way to know!
—Submitted by a parent

What an amazing place! After my son was at Friends for 1 year, his reading comprehension seemed to double. The teachers, parents, and adminstration seem to really love the kids they teach. I couldn't be happier. The Quaker system is truly all it is made out to be. This why Obama sends his girls to their sister school in DC.
—Submitted by a parent

Best Pre-K though 8th grade school in the city! Hands down! Is it perfect? No, but what school is? This school gave my wife and I amazing tuition assistance because they wanted our daughter. They worked with is and I will be forever greatful. The teachers are mission focussed. They are very well educated at some of the best institutions in the nation and have real world experience. They email us when our child is doing well and when she is not. The communication continues to improve and for that we can stay on top of her grades and social development. The curriculum is challenging, but not busy work driven, They assign homework that our daughter actually retains. We have discussions about her Human Rights and Community Service classes every night at the dinner table. I have never seen anything like this. She is only in Middel School and she is aware of what is happening in the world. Moreover, this school is an amazing place, If you live in the City of Detroit you definitely should send your child here. There are also no room for bullies here. The Quaker value system don't allow for it.99% of the time the student changes their behavior. 1% leave because they can't change.
—Submitted by a parent

As the current co-Clerk of the Board and a board member for the last seven years, I have always been impressed with the way the faculty, staff, head of school and all the children live out the Quaker values of peace, integrity, simplicity, community and equality. The atmosphere of friendship and warmth is evident the moment you walk in the door. Children greet you unselfconsciously, without prompting by adults. There is order without regimentation, nonviolent conflict resolution without shaming, and encouragement of each child to be him or herself while aspiring to the highest scholastic goals. Children make strong friendships across ethnic and racial lines -- something rarely seen in other schools, especially as children approach middle school age. The dedication and loyalty of the faculty to the school is amazing. The Quaker commitment to equality means that we strive to keep tuition low and offer financial support to those who need it. The school is ideally located five minutes away from downtown Detroit, where commuters to the newly revitalized business community can easily drop off their children be right nearby. Come and visit the school!

My son is very bright but very dyslexic and this is the FIRST school that has ever recognised his other strong talents and found a way to work with him that does not discourage but rather enriches him. You might also find it interesting that we have been to some of the finest schools in Europe and Asia and he has NEVER been as happy as he is currently. I am confident he is receiving a first rate education that is also eclictic and compassionate. I am confused when I read the review about the Headmaster being rude, unqualified and uncommunicative. Firstly, he was a minister for many years and he truly has the heart of each student in his consciousness. He is also friendly and clearly articulate. Friends is a school in a deprived area that reaches out to its local community and creates miracles on a very small budget. My experience of Friends School is that it is nurturing and inspiring and focuses on peace and understanding between all beings, both globally and locally. I t is not lightly that I give such a high recommendation, nor am I easy to please, being both in Education and Psychology myself.
—Submitted by a parent

It is a shame that this school, with so much potential, has continued its decline. My fingers are crossed that it will improve, for the good of the community that is serves, but my child will no longer be there to experience it, if it does.
—Submitted by a parent

A very good school! We are very pleased with our children's educational, personal, and moral experiences at Friends. They came from a very solid school, so our bar was set pretty high in terms of expectations. I can say that Friends has met or exceeded most of these. However, I would like to see improvements to the building and more tuition relief. Obviously the school suffered with enrollment with the shaky economy in the past few years. There was a transitional period with the administrative staff and certain teachers retiring which was a little rough, but all these things are easy fixes. I really appreciate how the school has rebounded. It's the intangibles Friends has that you can't get everywhere. For example, Its administration actually listens to your concerns and tries to address them to the best of their ability. It is a great environment for my children and I love the family themes. It is exciting to see my children actually amped up to go to school and eager to do homework! I credit all of that to Friends!
—Submitted by a parent

In the three years that my child has attended this school, it has gone downhill. The administration in incompetent and unprofessional. The headmaster in unqualified - he is rude and does not speak to anyone. The quality of teaching has declined as well; and as a result my child willl not be attending next year. If you are looking for a private school for your child to attend in the Detroit area; do not waste your money on Friends.
—Submitted by a parent

My children love going to Friends School. They feel that they are part of one big family. All of the faculty and staff care about them. After Friends, they went on to the very best schools. They were very weel prepared academically
—Submitted by a parent

I attended Friends School from Kindergarten through 8th grade, and my older brother went there for 9 years before me. I saw a lot change around the school in the long time that I've been around. I love atmosphere at Friends. I think that it's very rare to be able to say that you literally know every single person at your school, their name, and most of their parents. Friends is definitely a unique environment, which absolutely helped me exceed and get into a good high school. I talk to a lot of my friends from other schools, and they don't feel the same way about their elementary schools. Friends made such a lasting impression, that on days that I have off, I still come back and visit, hang out with my old teachers, and go to art and drama classes. Friends School molded me into the person I am today.
—Submitted by a student

I Attended Friends school From 3rd to 7th grade...Although I am Curently not there because our family decided to move..I Am going to miss all of my Teachers!!when I first entered middle school i was so happy..Every year the middle school students go on a camping trip to Camp Copneconic. Its a really fun camp..
—Submitted by a student

My child has attended this school for three years now. He loves all of his teachers and has thrived both academically and socially. We really appreciate the diversity, the focus on community service and social justice, and the amazing scholastic offerings. FSD offers a phenomal number of resource classes and extracurricular activities for a school of its size. We really feel as though we've found a home here.
—Submitted by a parent

I love the community at Friends School in Detroit. Aside from the strong academics, students are given individual attention that you don't find elsewhere. It is truly a gem in the city of Detroit.
—Submitted by a parent

This school has been great for both my 3-year old and 1st grader. The small class size allows for the teacher to really get to know each child and meet each child's needs. My kids just started in February and have been welcomed into the community with open arms. It is truly a family environment with great academics, arts, physical education and character education. I also love the diversity of both the students and the faculty and staff. I only wish the school had uniforms. The school also has a great after school program, offering dance, science and art club, girl and boy scouts, music lessons and sports. Now that the school offers, Spanish, French and Chinese, I know that my kids will receive a well rounded education.
—Submitted by a parent

This is a very loving school. The teachers are very concerened, and sometimes to concerned. But the school challenges the child greatly. And parent participation is great. I truly trust this school with my child while at work. Friends has strong headmaster leadership also! The diversity socially, economicaly, and racilly can not be compared!
—Submitted by a parent