Worst open house I have been to. The principal spent 35+ minutes talking about HER, her…read moreaccomplishments, HER family, her goals, her role as a parent...after going on more than 30 min only talking about HER, a lot of parents began to leave. I have been to other selective enrollment open houses and the principals at every other school got down to business and discussed what we were all there to learn, what programs the school offers, even presented current students to give their point of view of what they enjoyed about the school... However, here, the principal was more interested in flashing her Christian Louboutin heels than talking about why Payton is better than the other SSE HS...

My daughter graduated from Walter Payton 6 years ago. She excelled at Vanderbilt University and is…read morecurrently working on her MBA at University of Chicago. She flourished at WPHS and developed her skills in Math, Science, and critical thinking.

Yes. I misunderstood it said admission "priorities" are given to not only "siblings of currently…read moreenrolled students and active parishioners" as janet says but also ( taken from their website) "Students who are baptized Catholics and whose families are active parishioners for at least one year prior to application and are regular contributors (recommended contribution of $780/year to church collection) Students who are baptized Catholics and whose families have been registered, contributing parishioners for less than one year prior to application Students who are baptized Catholics and whose families are not parishioners Students from non-Catholic families" So if your parents have an additional $780 to donate to the church you are prioritized over one whose parents don't have an extra month of rent to donate . Sounds like discrimination still. Way to give opportunity to the lower income or non religious families.yes "ALL ARE WELCOME" to apply. As she said. But not all are welcome the same chances of getting admitted. I'm still saying it's an unfair admission process.

We currently have three children at SJB, and could not love it more! The teachers are incredibly…read moresmart, caring and engaging. Our principle stands outside the front door in the mornings to greet all the students as they enter. Teachers write emails to their class parents at least once a week, they are accessible and very willing to work with your child if there is a special need/learning deficit. I could go on and on with how wonderful our school is!

Best school so far,we moved from city to Skokie last year and my son use to go to Middleton…read moreelementary as he moved in 6th grade he is going to middle school at and my daughter is still at Middleton elementary as she is in 2nd hrOliver McCracken Middle School yesterday was the first day of school and he already loved it, hopefully It will be a great year for my son

My kids went to Middleton and Oakview many years ago and I still have friends whose children go…read morethere...I think it is a top-notched school. Teachers are concerned about each child as a person not just a student to cram things in their brain but how they feel and how they learn is important!

this is my beautiful school when i was young girl and that was 1981 oh how i miss it amazing stone…read moreschool it's been 40 years now wow how time flys

My son just started at this school and I've been very impressed with the staff - the principal is…read morevery accessible and easy to talk to. Teachers were friendly and willing to talk to a new, interested parent. I'm looking forward to him being here - kids here get good test scores, so he'll be challenged.

Most entitled parents I've ever seen. Does nothing but damage the businesses around it by having…read moreluxury cars blocking the whole road, both the limited parking for businesses and these people actually parking in the road blocking traffic in one direction. Ridiculous. Would be incredibly helpful if the schools traffic guards would do something about them lining up outside the school. This can't be that difficult.

We have been parents at this school since 2010 and have two BZ grads and one current lower school…read morestudent. Bottom line- this is a remarkable school. You will find top notch academics and your children will not only be very prepared to thrive in a rigorous high school but also have the social emotional skills, self advocacy and confidence to be a leader in their highschool setting and beyond. Our own kids are self starters, loyal friends, hard workers, engaged learners, and leaders and we attribute this to their schooling at Bernard Zell. The BZ early childhood program is spectacular. The thoughtfulness that has been put into the training of the staff and actual physical environment serves as a model of what an ideal developmentally appropriate pre-k program should be. Take a tour to see for yourself. I love the progressive flavor of this school. Our kids learn conceptual math, how to think analytically, how to be confident public speakers, how to work collaboratively with others and beyond -there is no route cookie cutter learning to be found. Other things we love about BZ: -This school has an awesome low to student teacher ratio and every single teacher my children have had has truly known their strengths and challenges and are invested in how to support them as individuals each year. -I love the growth mindset philosophy that you will see at every age level at BZ for making sure kids have "good struggles" and teaching them their brain is a muscle and while everything may not be easy at times that with dedication,persistence, practice and hard work (and accommodations from the teachers as needed) they can be successful. -We have loved that BZ has phenomenal resources for kids on every end of the continuum- kids who need a little extra enrichment will find it here and kids who need a little extra learning support will also find it at this school. - The school has a nice PE program ( the yearly rollerblading until in the school's gymnasium has been a definite highlight for my kids) . There is also a fantastic after school athletic program starting in 5 th grade which is included in tuition . Our kids chose to participate in soccer, basketball , volleyball and golf but there is also track, girls volleyball, and girls softball. Practices are typically offered 4 days per week ( but kids only have to commit to about 50 percent of those if involved in other extracurriculars.). The teams do surprisingly quite well competing with other local private schools , sportsmanship is emphasized, and it's a huge bonding experience for the kids ( the majority of students seem to participate in at least a sport even if they aren't stellar athletes ). For kids not interested in sports or who want to do some sports and some other activities, there are other cool offerings like robotic team ( one of my kids that and the annual competition was super fun to watch ) or lots of music extracurricular opportunities ( e.g jazz band, pit band for the school orchestra) - BZ has an extremely warm parental community. A long term teacher told us once that when your child goes to BZ, the whole family goes to BZ. That is spot on- there are so many ways to get involved here as parents and we feel we have made lifelong friends at this school. -We have loved affording our children a Jewish education. We aren't the most religious family and BZ has taken the pressure off of us to provide our kids with an excellent jewish education. My children who have already graduated are proud to be Jewish and have a strong Jewish identity. Sending our kids here was one of the best decisions we have ever made as parents. I highly recommend it !

Having filmed multiple events for The Play Lab, I've seen firsthand the impact that The Play Lab…read moreand its founder Melinda Martinez has had on its students. I witnessed firsthand the growth of the students as they were fully engrossed in Mrs. Martinez's philosophies and teachings. She keeps her class size small, so she can ensure her focus will be on one one-on-one interactions with her students, and that all students will get equal amounts of attention. She incorporates "play-based" teachings so that her young students have fun while they are learning. I've been filming school events/activities for a couple of years now, so I've seen them grow into graduates ready to face the next stage in life. These students who will go on to bigger and better things in life will do so because of what they learned, and the friendships they forged while at The Play Lab with Mrs. Melinda Martinez

Hands down Best School around! This has been my daughter's school since she was 3 years old. My…read morewife and I had worked with Doctors and many Therapists since the birth of my prematurely born baby girl and knew that We all had some work ahead of us, especially my daughter. My daughter had seen several therapists over the course of almost 3 1/2 years and actually never had more than a couple weeks time away from either a Dr or therapist, so when my wife brought up "pre-school" in addition to all the therapy my daughter was going through, I immediately cringed. I couldn't and did not want to imagine my highly sensitive and fragile daughter going to School. What?! Without Us?! Is she ready? Are We ready? Who was going to watch over her? Who's going to care for her like my wife and I? Who's going to comfort her and hug her when she is scared, crying or is just having an episode? Who was going to make her feel safe and welcomed. She requires a lot of special attention, how could she get that with other kids also going to school? So needless to say, my wife and I started our research on preschools and decided to try out The Play Lab. Wow! Wow! We were and still are so impressed with the school and it's curriculum, but especially with its owner and teacher, Melinda Martinez. My wife and I had so many questions and concerns, but before we could even get these questions or concerns out, Ms. Melinda had already answered them. My daughter has flourished and has grown so much. I cry thinking about how far she has come, how strong and independent she is becoming, how excited and proud she is of all her own accomplishments. This school has and does it all! When I say ALL, I mean ALL and then some. I expressed a lot of my concerns earlier in this review about how I felt when just talking about the idea of preschool. I would like to say, that all of those concerns and questions were addressed and answered day 1. Its never easy watching your kids go off to school for the first time and this was my wife and I second go around. But, this was especially uneasy for us when it came to our "preemie" little girl. I feel comfort in knowing my daughter is in Great hands, that she is loved, that she receives her comforting hugs and attention. She is proud of herself and her accomplishments everyday (what a confidence builder). My wife and I have never felt so at ease and comfortable. I know my daughter is in the best school, with the best teacher, and we all feel safe and secure. You cannot put a price on any of these things. Thank you for all you do and all that you are Melinda Martinez-Epperson! We Love You!

Great school. Busing to park district for after care, as well as quality after care after school…read more Family picnics, and adult friendly fundraisers, multiple dances. :

I can't speak to the actual school, but they have a gorgeous community garden that I've helped tend…read morewith Chicago Cares. A pleasant way to spend a nice Saturday morning, and it's in a cute area to boot.

I went here over a decade ago. Knowledgeable and fair teachers, except Galinsky and Frasz. There…read morewas a weird push to go to the best college possible. Thank god I did not. Saved the debt for grad school. Still live in parent's basement but have a respectable career with the major company in my field. As promised, I never ever had to work as hard as I did freshman, sophomore, or junior year, ever again. This school introduced me to people from so many different backgrounds and really opened my eyes to global issues. Case in point: Our main drama occurred right after graduation. One activist type guy followed a love interest to palestine. Also, a chick went to Israel, also following a love interest, joined the IDF, and immediately gave them all the information she knew about the activist guy.

My 16 year old son currently attends LPHS and I can't emphasize how amazing the staff is here. This…read moreschool is truly a Lincoln Park gem. You'll get the proper support from the staff. Dean Johnson is amazing and was very accommodating and helpful, he truly cares about the kids just like every adult that works here.