The galloway school Reviews

I waited to wait to write this after seeing how the school year would end and am really shocked by how awful this school has become. Upper Learning is a mess! The teachers are so unapproachable and unfriendly and are so full of themselves! While my kids do tend to exaggerate, after a few conferences with these people I am in absolute agreement with their assessments. Dr. Holt and Mccandless need to work in labs or in colleges in my opinion. Despathy is very righteous and dismissive. Mathis is a nightmare to deal with and I'm not surprised he needed to step down as Upper Learing principal since he sucks at both hiring teachers and dealing with students. The administration sucks, but don't worry, there is a new one every week anyway. Galloway is absolutely worse than a panhandler on the Marta train when it comes to begging/bullying for money. And if you don't donate, (like your over $50,000.00 for 2 kids isn't enough) you are subtly threatened with the suggestion of not remaining at Galloway as all of the donations are necessary to "further the community". Suzanna Jemsby may have accomplished a lot in her life so far, but as headmaster of Galloway, the founder's vision of every child doing their best and succeeding is fading fast and is being replaced by Ms. Jembsy's true talent of "raising money". You really wonder where it all goes, what's really being done with it. Money for this and that, sure, but this school raises stupid money every single year and the amenities really don't show it. Big mystery to me, has been for a while. Extremely liberal values were shoved down my kids throats which is every bit as bad as conservative opinions being strongly pushed upon others. It's a subtle whitewash at Galloway which isn't true of the real world. The classes are now too large and they have moved away from the discussions. I understand lectures are important but there is a very arrogant undercurrent here with some of the Upper Learning teachers. As condescending as they can be, I'd love to see them swim in a corporate environment like I'm in as a Director. I couldn't sleep if I even thought of treating my coworkers like these sarcastic teachers square off with students. We would have been better off at Walton, the public school in East Cobb county. And would have had more to show for it. I would rather have put the money towards bigger, fancier weddings or houses for my kids than Galloway.

Phenomenal school. Very focused on developing EACH child. The staff is incredible. We couldn't be any happier!!!! Simply the best.

Fabulous teachers, caring support staff, wonderful progressive community

Galloway is an awesome place! The teachers truly care about each and every student. They also welcome the involvement of parents at many different levels from helping out in the classroom to Board activities. The community is tight knit and it can be a bit hard to "break in" if you join it in your child's later years, but it's not impossible by any means. The administration is top notch, listening to our concerns and addressing them. They excel at creating win-win situations which is refreshing in our win-lose culture. Example... Recently the school went through a schedule change. After the new schedule was implemented, they took student feedback (at least in the Upper Learning/High School) and adjusted again to accommodate that feedback. This is just one example of their flexibility and student-centered culture. Is it the school for everyone, no; is it the school for us, yes!