The Boyd School – Herndon Campus

I agree with the first reviewer about the school being closed too often, especially in the winter. Fairfax County Public Schools close frequently although on days that there are no reasons to be closed (the snow was already over and the roads were perfectly fine), and the Boyd School follows the Public Schools decisions. Public Schools are free so parents have to put up with it, but we pay a hefty tuition for a private school, we expect better. In addition to that, they close on many other occasions such as two weeks on Christmas, one week for Spring Break, teacher’s service day, and more. My daughter is currently going there and I’m considering other options because of this.
In terms of staff and curriculum, it’s just okay. The teacher — student ratio there is quite high for the 3 – 6 year-​old class (10 to 1). Considering how high the tuition is, the ratio should be lower.
Overall the school is quite inflexible. If you want to cancel the contract, you have to notify them 3 MONTHS IN ADVANCE, which is an awefully long time to wait if you are not happy with the arrangements there.

The positives:
— Excellent staff that go out of their way to ensure all kids are included and happy
— Good management — capable and communicative
— Clean facilities
— Healthy food — breakfast, lunch and snack is included
— Interesting Montessori work w/​real life applications
— Happy kids — This is the biggest positive. My kids loved Boyd’s from day one, and were excited by the work and very happy with the friends and teachers
The negatives:
— School is closed too often. This place is not practical for a working couple
Example: Boyd’s is closed for 1 week for Spring break, 1 week for Summer break, 2 weeks for Christmas, 3 days for Thanksgiving, 3 days for teacher in service, 2 days for conference day and so on… This makes it very difficult for working parents to arrange for back up care or stay at home that often. Does not help that Boyd’s is closed every time Fairfax county declares school closing, when other child care facilities in the area opt for a delayed start when practical. Unfortunately, this is a big negative for us. Boyd’s started dictating our vacation plans and negatively impacting work for us, at which point we had to move the kids to a more practical place
Summary:
This is an excellent place for the kids, but not so practical for the parents. I will put my kids back here in a heartbeat if the school could be more cognizant of the challenges the closings pose to working parents.