Great school! Superior academics, and a small close-knit community. The best Catholic High School…read morein Ventura county.

Every experience in life is relative - and in that sense, relative to the Ojai Valley and Ventura…read moreCounty in General, Villanova Preparatory School remains your best bang-for-the-buck in private high school/prep-school education. The class sizes are small and there is still a cap on the number of students who may be admitted. The campus is absolutely beautiful, much like a small college, and there is an abundance of open space. The facilities are steadily (albeit slowly) being upgraded and improved upon, and the safe, quiet environment certainly promotes a sense of peacefulness and promotes learning. Through review of recruiting literature it's obvious that the school enthusiastically promotes it's International Baccalaureate (IB) Degree program which was put in place a few years back. And while this program may be of some value to international students (and a very small number of domestic students) it seems to be more of a "prestige marketing ploy" geared toward the well-off parents of foreign students who pay a ton of money to educate and board their children at VPS for 4 years. The bottom line is that although taking IB classes (or obtaining IB certification) may "look impressive" on a students college admission application, it's next to meaningless to the vast majority of United States based colleges and universities. These institutions would much rather see "AP" or "Honors" on that high school transcript next to the course title.....not "IB". Unfortunately, being such a small school with a small staff, VPS didn't have the capability to do both, and chose to phase out it's AP and Honors programs as it went "all-in" with the IB program. This, unfortunately was a huge disservice to those American kids who were / are likely to attend an American-based college or university that could honestly care less about IB. For a such a small school, there are many athletic options within which to participate, and there is an abundance of academic, service and social clubs run by students and overseen by a chosen faculty member. VPS is both a day and boarding school, with approximately a third of it's students living on campus. Most of these students are foreign nationals from around the world, and this obviously brings an interesting and engaging dynamic to the to the prep-school experience - not unlike college. These students share their culture and are readily immersed into the VPS community and ultimately become part of the family for life regardless of where they may go in the future. Many lifelong international friendships occur as a result. This love of sharing, acceptance and diversity in the Augustinian tradition has been happening at VPS for decades - long before the toxic "cancel-culture" and "woke" extremism we see today. In general terms, the VPS faculty and staff are quite qualified. And being blessed with smaller class sizes and motivated students, they will routinely out-perform their peers elsewhere. In all fairness, a handful of the teachers are absolutely phenomenal - some wearing multiple hats as teacher, coach, advisor, etc. There are of course a small minority of teachers and staff who seem to have a personal agenda beyond that of educating the students and preparing them for the real world. Determined to find a "racist" hiding behind every tree and united in their hatred of America, our military and the police...they form an increasingly vocal element devoid of truth and honesty, but full of parroted phrases and slogans. The obvious hope is that this too will pass, and that both the headmaster and the Board will keep the stupidity in-check.

A truly great school in one of the most beautiful landscapes of the upper Ojai valley. I graduated…read morefrom here 20 years ago. Still think of it with massive respect for the teachers, arts program, and connection to nature.

I hope this review will force the Board of Trustees to seriously question the school's current…read moreleadership. It needs to change; the sooner, the better. Until then, spare yourself and your child the endless frustration and misery of trying to communicate with people who simply do not respond. It's unfathomable to think about spending this kind of money only to be ghosted by a school's top administrators. Yet, since enrolling in early May, that is what has happened to our family. As a local Ojai resident, the many scathing reviews in recent years puzzled me having heard rave reviews from local friends and parents when our family first moved here in 2016. Besant seemed to have so many positive aspects, and my child was drawn to these strengths. We applied and were accepted, hoping the scathing reviews were wrong. The reviews were not wrong. We were. In choosing Besant Hill. Since I enrolled my child in early May, I have been trying for three months to have one simple 30-minute conversation with the Director of Academics about course selection. I called. I emailed. I reached out to other administrators for help. When, and if, I would receive a response, it would lack any substance often offering to set up a time to talk, only to be ghosted upon any attempt to follow up. This deeply unprofessional administration showed our family in these three months since enrolling that they cannot competently do their jobs so there's no way that I can send my child there in good conscience. We waited beyond a reasonable amount of time to hear back from them with answers to our basic questions. I have withdrawn my child from Besant Hill and enrolled them somewhere else. I received more answers to questions in four days of applying to my child's new school than I've gotten in three months from Besant Hill since paying tuition. I am confident that the new school community we just joined is thriving and the administrators and faculty there will be able to meet my child's needs. This is what private school families are seeking and deserve.

Oak Grove School is such an outstanding environment for a child to learn, develop and flourish…read more It's faculty and staff are top notch and truly believe in the mission of the school. OGS provides excellent college preparatory education in an environment that allows the individual to discover, question and explore. - Former Staff Member

Oak Grove is a place where every child is met exactly where they are. This is one of the most…read morepowerful ways to raise inquisitive, healthy adults. OGS is a caring, inclusive, open-minded community. Students are given opportunities to explore nature, the world, and themselves in ways few other schools are able to offer. It was my home for 8 years, and I still feel at home when I visit campus. Keep doing what you do best, and go Lizards!

The best was so fun to see and send my kids to All the staff…read morewas nice and the place is always clean

The campus is beautiful! All of the Freshman are loaned a horse to take care of and learn to ride…read more After their Freshman year, they can continue with their horse or let it go to next year's incoming Freshman. The Freshman dorms are "singles" so they don't have to share their bedroom with anyone else. Several of the teacher's have dogs, so you'll see some dogs around campus. The staff and administrators seem to genuinely care about each individual student.

oh happy chap…read more.. this was a great school for all those who could not hang with the scene/douche bags at nordhoff. being within walking distance from my house, i was able to catch up with all the backlogged requirements in my HS education, keep a parttime job and play in a punk rock band....all while keeping a 3.6 GPA. god bless the guy piasco experience! "first i get to drinkin....then i get to thinkin....then i get to a drinkin and a thinkin...." the man loved cooking italian food, JFK, playing piano, drinkin and teaching kids everyone else gave up on.

My experiences with this school are over the years when they've hosted parking for shuttles for the…read moreOjai Music Festival's Holiday Homes Tour. Many years, the gym has also been the site of the Marketplace gift boutique. This year they moved the Marketplace to another venue, but kept the shuttle destination at the school. Parking is not that plentiful, but they had an overflow solution available. We don't live in the area, so aren't up on the school's ratings or general reputation. Judging by the Quonset hut style gym building, it's a historic campus. Situated in a largely residential neighborhood, it is away from the town's core, which makes it a good location for shuttle ride staging for special events.