The Raleigh School

The Raleigh School offers a wonderful, warm, engaging elementary school learning environment. We have had children at the school since 2003 and could not be more pleased with the quality of their education. The Raleigh School is so much more than just a school, it truly is a community. Our oldest child is now in middle school and has been extremely well prepared by the solid background, both academically as well as socially, that he received from his years at The Raleigh School. As far as the "teacher turnover" that the previous reviewer mentioned, this has nothing to do with the financial stability of the school....This year two teachers happen to be retiring after lifelong careers at the school, other than that the school has very little teacher turnover ever. This school is truly excellent in every way.
—Submitted by a parent

This school depends intensely on parent participation -- which is generally a good thing -- however in this case it is due to a lack of funding for basics like landscaping, IT, accounting, and legal services. Parents are more involved as "workers" rather than in value added activities involving their children. The education is good, but not exceptional -- there is teacher turnover and again this seems related to financial stability. The experience is highly variable depending on the teacher involved -- which is indicative of a lack of maturity in the overall curriculum -- although the preschool has been around for many years, the elementary school is a relatively young endeavor. There is also what appears to be a lack of innovation in curriculum -- for example, language choice is limited to Spanish. The administration does not appear actively engaged in this type of thinking. The school is secular, which can be a positive for many. Overall, our general feel is that there are better private and public school experiences in the Triangle area and we are actively seeking to move our children once we are done evaluating options.
—Submitted by a parent

Our family had a wonderful experience during our 12 years at The Raleigh School. Both our children attended the preschool for 3 years and then the elementary school for 6 more. Upon graduation we chose to enroll in a public middle school and the transition was smooth. We love the parental involvement of the school and the administration and teachers have always been supportive. We highly recommend that you consider The Raleigh School for your children. We are thankful to have been part of the school community for so many years.
—Submitted by a parent

I read through the negative reviews and I am a bit surprise. As parents - do your homework before signing up your children for private schools. As part of the interviewing process it is well known that parents are supposed to be involved throughout. It is also a small school so it definitely do not have resources to handle 'exceptional cases'. On the other hands - teachers are great and my kid loves it.
—Submitted by a parent

Our family's experience at The Raleigh School was a nightmare. While the school's "educational philosophy" of child-driven learning looks great in a brochure, in practice we found that any preschooler who didn't immediately fall into line was flagged as a problem student. After learning of our two year old's moderate speech delay before school even began, the teacher was convinced he was autistic. After multiple professionals determined autism was not a concern and our son was developing normally, his teacher remained unconvinced and came to us with never-ending lists of concerns, pushing a cascade of intervention. The administration provided no support at all, condescendingly dismissing our opinions and requiring a costly and unnecessary full-time classroom aid (despite the high teacher to student ratio). After months of worry, we realized we weren't dealing with a problem child, but with a stubborn case of confirmation bias. As you can see from other negative reviews below, our experience isn't unique. We're aware of other families driven from TRS under similar circumstances. Our child is now thriving at a new preschool where the teachers have had no concerns or complaints.
—Submitted by a parent

I have over 15 child years of experience at the Raleigh School. I give it three stars because the pre school is so outstanding - rated apart, the preschool would receive 5 stars with the warning that there is a lot of volunteer time expected. The upper school was great for one of my children. My above average, first child did fine there. However, when we moved on she did need to learn grammar, how to study and brush up on fast math facts in order to keep up. In my experience, TRS did not spend quality time on these issues. Also, like one reviewer mentioned, TRS does have two to three teachers to avoid unless your child is way above grade level. One teacher condoned and supported a bullying situation which ended in the bullied child permanently leaving. That said, they have some teachers who are truly amazing and gifted. Also, the parents at TRS are wonderful. It is a culturally diverse, friendly group. -Very liberal however and not afraid to show it. Other reviewers said that the administration seemed to have a "take it or leave it" attitude. This was certainly the case in our last years there. TRS upper school is a specific school for specific children. Careful.
—Submitted by a parent

Our children attended The Raleigh School for several years. We found the preschool experience to be wonderful and on par, we suspect, with any school in the Triangle. We had generally good experiences with the teachers at elementary school, although we heard from other parents that there is significant variability among the caliber of teachers. This was not our experience. Our biggest concerns were the lack of responsiveness on the part of the elementary school administrative staff and a general "take it or leave it" tone to correspondence that we did receive. When making decisions regarding a child's education, in particular when the cost of that education is in the $10,000 range, many parents will vote with their feet when confronted with indifference or arrogance ... as we did.
—Submitted by a parent

This is the most wonderful school. The teachers are great, the classrooms are wonderful and the administration really cares. I cannot imagine a more wonderful school to attend. My son is so happy there and we look forward to all his years there. The parent involvement is a lot, but so worth it.
—Submitted by a parent

Our experience at The Raleigh Preschool was very disappointing. We found that if your child is not perfectly behaved that they do not want them. The teachers who are all supposed to be expertly trained are quick to refer to an outside counselor(at your own expense) to find out the problem. Also the amount of parent involvement is a huge amount of time and money(always bringing in food,party supplies,gifts for teachers) considering the amount of tuition is quite high. I feel that The Raleigh Preschool does a great marketing job but does not follow through with meeting the needs of individual children and helping families. I was amazed at the lack of enthusiasm and involvement the teachers provided in the classroom while the "helping parent" (a different parent in the classroom daily) played with kids
—Submitted by a parent

The Raleigh School is a special place. My children can't wait to go to school each day and are excited for the new school year to begin. The teachers are outstanding and create fabulous integrated and hands-on learning in a beautiful campus environment. The administrative leadership is thoughtful and highly qualified. There is a great sense of community with involved parents and a terrific group of kids. I would highly recommend the school to parents seeking a quality education for their children where they will truly love to learn.
—Submitted by a parent

The school is held back from its potential by its administration. The overbearing and unnecessary force used by the school administration hampers a great community of teachers.
—Submitted by a parent

Not worth the money or aggravation. Head of School needs to retire and allow fresh leadership and thought to carry forward. This is a school that talks about open minded thinking and diversity, but practices neither. Teachers are dedicated, but hampered by administration that is rude and arrogant.
—Submitted by a parent

This is an amazing school. Our son spent three years in the preschool & is now in kindergarten here and we could not be happier. The school is beautiful--the 'outdoor classrooms' in the preschool are wonderful--and the teachers are first-rate. Our son loves to go to school everyday & teachers work well with each child making sure he/she is challenged and happy. Parent participation is a must (and big plus!) at this school & it truly has a wonderful 'community' feel. Our only minor complaint is the introduction of computers in the kindergarten classroom--felt like that could wait a couple years, but they are only used sparingly. We highly recommend this school!
—Submitted by a parent

The Raleigh School is a wonderful environment to nurture the love of learning for children. The teachers are highly skilled, and foster an environment where each child is treated as an individual and encouraged to excel and grow at their own rate. The differences of each child is celebrated and the focus is in supporting loving and challenging each student as they need. I love this school -- my only complaint is that it does not go beyond Grade 5.
—Submitted by a parent

Superb secular school. Teachers are devoted and gifted. Very happy with all aspects of the school, and it is a relative bargain @ $8,000 a year in our area.
—Submitted by a parent

My children are eager to go to school everyday -- it's a wonderful environment for learning. The teachers are experienced and enthusiastic. Parents can be as involved as they wish and the vast majority of parents choose to be very involved through parent committees. The Raleigh School offers preschool through grade 5 and prepares the children very well for their next steps. Visit and you'll see why this school should be on your list!
—Submitted by a parent

I thought I had a child who 'just didn't like school'. Fortunately, we discovered The Raleigh School and now have an enthusiastic learner who loves school and has blossomed both academically and personally. The Raleigh School is truly a place where children are nurtured, listened too, and taught HOW to learn in an incredibly fun, interactive, and 'team oriented' environment. The teachers are awesome,....observe a class sometime...you will be blown away. Even my child commented during the first week of school 'mom, the teachers actually listen to the kids. They think what we have to say is important!' Field trips are many, meaningful (and great!), tying in completely with the course of study at the time. Not just another few hours (or a night!) away from school here! Entire staff is college degreed, ratio low with assistants in every classroom, test scores are up there with the best of the best!
—Submitted by a parent