Awesome school....,my child has attended from 6-to hopefully 8..my only hiccup is not the school,…read morebut the dekalb county's new attendance policy which is ...when a child is "absent, excused, with a drs' not etc.. checked out early, due to illness..etc.., checked in late etc.., they are considered - absent. your child may have dr's appt's w/ notes, checked out of 1-or more classes, for an appointment...but marked absent (mind you, they came to school and was checked out by a parent, guardian, or emergency contact). make it make sense!!! my child has never had any attendance issue, and i am offended about this. i've attended a meeting where other parents felt the same. Dekalb county...what is the problem here??? Parents are getting notifications that are appalling (to myself, husband, and scholar). Notes that are sent in are not getting to the proper channels, and I do have email receipts to justify. I am not here to bash and please, excuse the all caps, my business requires it. it never comes off..I am not yelling. However, I am so dispappointed in this years adminisration. Should this be directed to Mountain Industrial??? Please reply with where it should go. The attendance person was in the meeting but had little to add. I will gladly send an email to the proper chanels. I may not word things correctly, but I am sure you get what I am saying. When i was in attendance in one of the recent meetings, the majority had the same feelings.

My child goes here. Generally speaking, this school is pretty nice. Although, many of the kids here…read morehave serious anger problems, I would suggest some sort of anger management class or reformation rather than immediate expulsion. The problems are still persisting outside of the school, so these punitive actions are not helping and are failing the children here.

The best high school in the state. The staff and faculty are top notch with a commitment to quality…read moreeducation. Theres so much for the students to experience such as football, swimming, chorus, baseball, soccer, band, R.O.T.C and more. Tudors are helpful and friendly, teachers have study sessions for students who need it. Just an all around great school. Go Wildcats! !!

Both of my children have had a great experience here at FAST. The administration works with…read morefamilies from home to school and school to home and are solution based along with collaborative. I am a mom who needs flexibility and this school works well for our family dynamic. It is to be noted that nothing is perfect, but with open communication and collaboration, problems are quickly solved here.

Stay away from this school - Unorganized mess, questionable staffing choices - Kids will fall…read morebehind because of low quality instruction.

Great school great teachers but Please stop masking our children! They need to breathe specially…read moreoutside some fresh air!

It's on fire! I went went to this school when I was in elementary school. They have good teachers,…read moregood students, and they always have something new todo. This school is awesome.

As a up and coming high schooler I had a great time at this elementary school. The staff never…read moreseems to let you down when you are at you lowest. 10/10 would recommend going to this school.(from experience btw)

I am new to Alpharetta, and my son is new to this school. He goes to Grade 4 here. The teachers and…read morethe staff are lovely. However, there's bullying, use of foul language, and bad behavior by students in this school. When things are brought to the notice of the staff, it is addressed, but as no disciplinary action is taken, things do not change or stop. My son just spent close to 3 months here and has faced bullying and racism. Seeing how some students can go unpunished despite doing bad things is disappointing as a parent. Some grade 4/ 5 students are mannerless and fearless and engage in bullying that's poisonous for the school and other good kids. I hope staff can look into such incidents more seriously and take strict action.

An amazing school. The staff is amazing. The facilities are great. They have a basketball gym that…read moreis used by the city for recreation basketball. My kid's education here has been phenomenal.

This school doesn't look like much on the outside, but it looks nice on the inside…read more The focus of this school as of last school year is the 7 habits of daily learning. This school has a huge Hispanic population. Most of the students speak both English and Spanish. As of last school year, most of the staff members were very friendly, and welcoming. Unfortunately, some of the staff were the exact opposite, and that contributed to the overall moral of the school.

I just dropped my child off at NDA this morning where I saw the principal standing outside in…read morefreezing temperatures to greet incoming students. She helped a black child who was struggling with a backpack over his winter coat. Then, she did the laughing "chilly" dance with another much younger black child, perhaps a kindergartener or first grader, who was racing inside to escape the cold. Mrs. Deruki greeted two Asian sisters on their way in the front door and waved at a group of Hispanic siblings trekking down the sidewalk. Everyone was smiling, children and adults alike. As I witnessed all this from my car, I couldn't help but think about the review complaining about NDA's lack of diversity. This is not an all white school like so many other private schools in Georgia. In my child's class alone, there are Hispanic families, Asian families, mixed race families, and black families. I want my child in a school that welcomes all races and ethnicities, and honestly, that has been my experience at NDA. I cannot speak for other parents who may feel differently, and I feel sad for the mom who felt like her daughter's needs were not met. But, there must be more to that story that was not shared here on Yelp. My fear is that negative reviews calling NDA racist will scare away the very families that NDA wants to welcome to its community. Please don't be afraid. My daughter's experience at NDA has been wonderful. The academics are rigorous and the expectations are high. She has not loved every single teacher, but some teachers are adored, deeply. And that's life, isn't it? Persevere, learn, grow. Notre Dame Academy is not a perfect fit for every student, but my Colombian American daughter loves it, and she is thriving.

Our experience at Notre Dame Academy was deeply painful and rooted in racism and bias. From the…read morevery beginning, exactly our third month at the school, we received warnings from former parents about the school's issues with racism. Sadly, those warnings proved to be true. My daughter, who was in second grade, experienced repeated instances of discrimination--not just from peers, but from teachers and the administration. In Kindergarten, she was told by another child that her "skin was not good" and was excluded from playing with other girls because of her skin color. In 2nd grade, she developed anxiety around lunchtime and was yelled at by her teacher in the cafeteria instead of being supported. When I emailed the teacher to explain her anxiety and ask for patience, I received a dismissive response claiming that my daughter's "behaviors are becoming intentional." Despite never having a history of behavioral issues, her anxiety was labeled as intentional misbehavior--something I firmly believe would not have happened if my daughter were white. A white child would have simply "had anxiety." My daughter was criminalized for hers. Our pediatrician even wrote a letter urging the school to support her with more understanding. Still, no empathy was shown. After I addressed her anxiety and asked to be updated with any further issues during our teacher conference and offered support--as both a parent and an education professional--I was met with defensiveness. During our Zoom teacher conference, I professionally and calmly provided suggestions on how to create a more inclusive environment for all students. I was a former instructional coach and thought it would have been helpful for the teacher if I shared some strategies. Rather than take this in good faith, the teacher immediately made herself the victim--a pattern we've seen throughout Black history, where people of color advocating for themselves are painted as threats. The teacher then went to the principal, Julie Derucki, cried, and claimed she felt "attacked." The principal sent an email to me requesting a meeting and expressed her concern that her teacher "felt attacked" by me in our conference. That word--"attacked"--is heavy, loaded, and racially coded, especially when used to describe a person of color. It was incredibly offensive and dehumanizing. I raised my concerns about this language, how it was offensive, and the dangerous implications it carries, but I received no apology or acknowledgment. I requested a meeting with the teacher and principal to understand how the teacher "felt attacked" in our Zoom call. Instead, I was asked if I needed help "finding another school." The remaining few weeks of the school year became unbearable and extremely uncomfortable. The principal greeted us with sarcastic tones, rolled her eyes at me during mass when I asked where to sit, and the teacher who once greeted every car at pickup pointedly ignored ours. What little support was offered for my daughter's mental health turned out to be performative and disorganized, with no follow-through. Before departing the school, I did speak to a board member and the president of the school to express my concerns with racism. The president was very aware of this ongoing issue at the school that has caused a turnover of both staff and families throughout the years. In my opinion, Notre Dame Academy is not a safe or supportive environment for students of color. The school is not inclusive (although it is promoted on the website), does not put all students first, and does not hold its staff accountable when clear bias and harm are at play. If I could give zero stars, I would. I share this review in hopes that no other child or family experiences what we did, especially those of color.