I love studying here. The great history of the school is such an inspiration, every day I come into…read morethe school and get excited to learn, what all these exciting teachers have to say. Life is good at U-High, and everyday I love life here!

From the owner: Founded by the renowned educator John Dewey in 1896 and located in Hyde Park, the University of…read moreChicago Laboratory Schools are among the nation\ u2019s best.Being part of the University of Chicago means that the importance of intellectual lifeof thought and explorationinfuses everything we do across all aspects of our curriculum. Families who choose Lab care deeply about curiosity, inquiry, and creativity. All are attracted to a diverse community and an environment that creates and nurtures the habits of expansive thinking and complex problem-solving.Life after Labprepared for success in college and beyond Virtually all Lab alumni go on to graduate from a four-year college. They gain acceptance to outstanding colleges around Chicago and the country: from the University of Chicago, University of IllinoisUrbana Champaign, Northwestern, and DePaul, to Harvard, Emory, University of Southern California, and many more. And Lab grads find each other wherever they gotheir Lab relationships last for years after graduation, turning into unexpected opportunities over and over as they pursue any number of different fields: medicine, law, education, banking, finance, theater, and the creative arts.

My son is a first grader at Black Branch and I must say, so far I'm impressed! I absolutely LOVE…read morethe small class size and the ability to monitor your child's performance via ClassDojo app. Definitely a great school to start with! I'll update more throughout the school year

Ray williams is A HORRIBLE SCHOOL, and this is why. As a student at ray i feel very picked on, and…read morebullied always being the first one to get into trouble when MULTIPLE kids have done worse than me. this is very unacceptable, the teacher and staff are so rude, FOR NO REASON AT ALL! students are bullied every day for there own likings, we barely learn anything at this school and the afterschool programs are even worse, its like they dont try and then the security is very noisy when its not there business or time to even be there. they don't do there job in protecting the students from being picked on they mainly take it as a joke. Or laughs and giggles. If u want to send your child here get ready for the amount of money you will be paying to the school. It's fundraisers with every single fun activity. the staff are like puppets being controlled by the principal and assistant principal. SO DO NOT SEND UR CHILD HERE!!!!

Just wanted to give kudos to Ray's current administration. Principal Megan Thole and Assistant…read morePrincipal Gayle Harris-Neely are a super duo! They have brought the teachers and staff together, welcomed parents and leveraged their desire to help, and always put the students first. Always. My 8 year old son has been at Ray since he was 3. He has always loved the school and his teachers have been so great. I am helping through a newly established partnerships committee and have seen new robotics, coding, dance, and philosophy classes offered to kids after school. Pilot Light brought top-notch Chicago chefs to teach the 3rd graders science/social studies through cooking. The school is fun and engaging, and although there are always things to work on, I am happy that my family is part of it.

My granddaughter attends this school. This is her first year. We had the opportunity to attend her…read moreChristmas program, which was very organized and well done. we also like the way they stress independent thinking.

We sent our sons there from P3 through 8th grade. The school was a great place for my two Black…read moreboys and they both really thrived there. I really appreciated that the school met them where they were at and built from there. I can say that of nearly every teacher they had during their 11 years at Ancona. The community is very engaged and feels like a small village in a big city. The results have been great as both of my sons have done great in HS, socially and academically, building on the foundation Ancona gave them.

Unfortunately, this school has gone downhill significantly. It feels like many of the good teachers…read morehave left, and the overall quality and professionalism have declined. Communication is a major issue -- emails often go unanswered, messages left with the main office don't get returned.

I spent the second half of my grade school years here, before it was called an Academy. Back in…read morethe day it was just John H. Vanderpoel (poel pronounced pool) elementary school, which served grades K-8. No middle school back then, and grade school to high school was a big jump. No buses then, either. We walked to school. In the dead of winter, we walked. It wasn't far for me, though, about 5 blocks down quiet streets lined with huge trees. We lived next-door to my grandparents, who had lived in Beverly since before my mother was born, so I'm thinking my mom went to Vanderpoel, too, but I can't remember for sure. But I do remember the school, a 3-story old brick building that included swings on the playground. I remember my teachers, I remember the gym that doubled as an auditorium, I remember my classmates. The school was named after John H. Vanderpoel (in 1910?) as was Vanderpoel Ave., the street behind the school. John Vanderpoel, born in 1857 in the Netherlands, was an influential artist and taught at the Art Institute of Chicago for 20 years beginning in 1880. Georgia O'Keeffe was one of his students. She praised him as a teacher. Vanderpoel's book, "The Human Figure", was published in 1907. BOY could he draw in pencil & charcoal. Until 1929, his works were housed in the school, then moved to nearby Ridge Park Field House & displayed in the art gallery named after him. Vanderpoel School is indeed part of Beverly's rich history & I loved it there. I loved my neighborhood, my friends, my school, and the simplicity of growing up back in the day (not saying how long ago but it was....long ago). I still have many of my grade school papers & projects. Wow, so different from the work kids do today. Example: a geography project for a state (or country?) that exported cotton. In addition to a written essay, I glued a hunk of cotton to one of the pages. I got an "E" for excellent, no "A" back then at this school. My favorite class: art. I also took kiddie art classes at the Art Institute & then majored in Fine Art in college. I went on to have an art gallery in a Chicago suburb. I'm guessing Mr. Vanderpoel would like that. I'm guessing I would have liked Mr. Vanderpoel.