An amazing school. No bullying…read more The only thing is that there is a new principle every 2 years but I don't know if that's true.

This school is horrible! The staff yell and Belittle the children and disregard them. Their only…read moreconcerns are their expectations, they do not care about the children.

My alma mater is one of the other 4 colleges in the area but I did take a class her as part of the…read more5 college consortium. My oldest followed 2 generations and went to that school as well but my middle son marches to the beat of a different drum. So I was not too surprised when he applied to Hampshire College. My son was very carrot and stick orientated so very focused on grades and he was accepted to 9 of the 10 schools he applied for ... RPI being one of his top two choices with Hampshire being the other. I was intrigued how he would deal with a evaluation based classes. He has adjusted pretty well. So far I am thrilled with his experience and he seems to be fitting right in.

I attended Hampshire from Fall 94-98. Bridging the years where Hampshire went from the grads who…read moretook 10 years to get a diploma (LOTS of "student sabbaticals" which weren't allowed after some school changes) and the "new kids" who fell under stricter guidelines. Pre-2000, a lot of Hampshire students were left with a "sink or swim" style of education. The faculty were amazing (Marion was excellent with Tai Chi and other classes and the outdoor programs were excellent, David Kerr and others were supportive and definitely helped me stay on track. Being one of a small number of financial aid students, the feeling at the beginning of each year was incredibly stressful (if you couldn't prove you had the funds, sometimes making the difference up in cash before matriculation, you couldn't start the school year). Financial stresses aside, it was one of the best times of my life. Hampshire College gave me insights into the way I work and strengthened my belief in self worth and my ability to achieve whatever I set myself up to do. Hampshire is a direct reason why I was able to take more risks after college, pay off a tremendous amount of debt in just a few years (yeah business consulting!) and achieve a lot of the successes I have now. I learned the undergrad education wasn't so much about what I studied, but how I set goals, researched, learned, and achieved whatever I set out to do. Those lessons have given me more than any piece of lambskin was worth. Yes - there were Hipsters at Hamp before Hipsters were a "thing" and there will continue to be the trust-fund babies who opt to float through four years of f-ing around and not really doing anything but spend money and get high. There are more, way more, motivated students who are pushing themselves to be more than what most colleges and universities expect. I'd argue there are more alumni from Hampshire (graduates or drop outs) who've succeeded because they were real examples of what a Hampshire student is - motivated, dedicated, self-assertive, risk-taking, and willing to fail several times to achieve success at whatever they're doing than there are from other more "normal" schools. I loved Hampshire and while it still definitely needs to improve its alumni relations, it's a constant work in progress and it's great to see awesome kids coming and going from there still...

10/10 highly recommend brighter beginnings! My daughter…read morestarted here at 3 months old and I couldn't be happier with the experience we have had room 3 (the infant room) MS VIRGEN is amazing! Our daughter has such a strong bond with her and is always happy and smiling when I pick her up at the end of the day, Ms Virgen truly treats those babies as if they were her own and I couldn't have asked for anything better! Her and Nicole (who is also amazing!) read books to the babies, do arts and crafts, and make sure all babies get equal love and attention. The room is cleaned daily and their sick policies protect our little ones from spreading illnesses. They have a huge fenced in backyard with play structures and activities for the older kids. They frequently take the babies on walks with strollers. They also post the cutest pictures on their daycare app, which is nice to see while you are away from your child. Lily is awesome and runs a great facility. She is easy to work with and has always accommodated our needs without issue. My boyfriend and I both cried on our daughter's last day here (due to relocation). It was truly heartbreaking leaving this place behind as we knew how loved and well taken care of our daughter was in their care. I have nothing but great things to say and if you get lucky enough to send your child here, I promise you and your kiddo will be more than pleased with your experience

Cannot say enough nice things about Brighter Beginnings! Lilly, the Director, is amazing and really…read moreadds a personal touch to the center. They were very flexible with our needs, during a difficult transition through relocation/new jobs. Our son was enthusiastic about going to daycare each day and loved the teachers and friends he made. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

let's see - terrible education, terrible high school administration (especially Dina). Biggest…read moremistake of all of our parenting decisions was enrolling our daughter for the 9th grade. WISH I had a time machine to delete my daughter's 9th grade year (2024-2025). I can't imagine kids being set up for academic success in college after attending Hartsbrook. Don't do it. If your kids are there already - I don't know what to say except I am sorry. If they are already in the high school - I don't see you transitioning well to a real school - this place is a daycare at best.

This school community is a marvel -- I've never seen anything like it. The sense of welcome is…read morepalpable immediately, the beauty of the rolling hills and gardens and buildings are unbelievable, and the way our two boys have blossomed into socially-comfortable, environmentally-aware, curious learners over these last 2 years is something we'll always be deeply grateful for. Can't wait for all the years ahead of us. We highly recommend this school, from administration to curriculum to community. All of it.

My daughter was a student at Children First Day School. I pulled her last month because she came…read morehome wearing a diaper under her underwear. She is fully potty trained, and was before she started at CF. She had a sudden onset of potty regression in the two weeks before I found her diapered. CF shockingly took no responsibility and had no explanation for who diapered her, who handled my daughter's naked body. I pulled her shortly thereafter. The situation left me disturbed and I want to inform other parents so they can be on the lookout for their own children. They confused my daughter, sent her mixed messages, undermined me and lied to me repeatedly. I don't care to be a bystander in case it is being done to other children. Do not send your children here.

Children First proved to be a very strict educational environment…read more Children are being analyzed every step of the way and criticized for every little thing they do not taking into account their level of development but the level of teacher's annoyance at their behavior which is appropriate more or less for preschoolers. Being humiliated for not making the right choice happens all the time. I experienced fist hand how a teacher made a little boy cry because he chose corn chips which had 3 organic ingredients and a low sodium content over a little juice box made of concentrate and 52 grams of sugar...I was appalled at this especially since it was lunch and the teacher wanted the child to have his 52 grams of sugar juice box instead of the simple organic corn chips...The little boy was crying really hard and the teacher took him out of the classroom making him feel humiliated even more... They are very concerned about being on schedule making staff and children alike experience high levels of stress. One time they had the children outside for only 5 minutes after having them get dressed for half an hour just because it was only 11:15 and lunch time making some children cry and experience disappointment after working so hard at getting ready for being outside for only 5 minutes... Outside time is another issue: they do not allow more than 5- 30 min of outside time in the morning and in the afternoon; teachers would rather finish up their chores before heading outside around 4 pm when nap time usually is done at 2 pm... Communication is only done online between the teachers. While it's good to be on the same page with everybody, a lot of the staff people are barely allowed to have time to read through everything and then they are criticized for not having the right approach to a certain situation/ child. There is a lot of talking around behind closed doors about teachers, parents and children as well making it difficult for transparency and good and honest communication. Children First is a somewhat good school, but being so strict and overly concerned about time makes the whole atmosphere be stressful and consequently not too many smiles on the children's faces who are kept inside so much amount of the daytime. Another thing that made me reconsider is that they fired a teacher for being home with her sick child for 3 separate days. Her child got sick at this school and they still fired her and it was done not in person, but on the phone... Supporting such an inconsiderate, harsh and strict educational and work environment would be equal to supporting inhumanity towards children, parents and teachers alike.