Tamarack Waldorf School

Children thrive in a caring environment where they can be themselves and discover the world around them. Relationships and learning through the arts are at the center of this philosophy.

I am a community member who has seen several sides of the school as an employee, parent, and neighbor. I would love to give an honest opinion (although less than 1200), and in general I feel that Tamarack is an above average school that can offer an amazing education to many students. That being said it has many flaws as well, and is not the right place for everyone; it is easy to fall through the (academic) cracks. Upon reading many of the reviews, I feel that most of the 5 stars were written in the honeymoon period, which can last quite a while. If you visit Tamarack at a community event or open-house, you will be flooded with lively sights, sounds and smells that are a comforting display that your children will be in good hands. This is not an out of the ordinary experience as most days are filled with these lively sights, sounds and smells, and the teachers are caring.

I do believe that the teachers are smart, inspiring and well intended, but the hiring process is questionable, and it is unclear if your child will be with a very experienced teacher (possibly for 8 years) or someone with little-to-no experience. The teachers are caring and to go above and beyond anything that is reasonable, meaning they work so hard they can be prone to burnout. Teaching at a Waldorf school is extremely consuming to time, and is emotionally and physically challenging. In a Waldorf school, parents are supposed to hold 1/3 of the school, (the administration holds 1/3 and the teachers the other 1/3). In reality Tamarack is run by the faculty which is great for the teachers, mostly good for the students, but not for a well-functioning institution. There is no transparency, and the parent association that should be allowed to make some of the decisions for and with the school, (you will be told that the parents have that power) is actually a glorified group of parents who put together bake sales, bagel breakfasts and other fundraisers. I only wish they were honest about this. Parents are expected to give time, money, or supplies at various times in the year. Parents who give 200% of their blood sweat and tears hare held more valuable in the community of school, parents, teachers and administration. It can be daunting to the average parent who will feel like an outcast. The parents who give 200% will constantly be asked to give more, which creates greater animosity and burnout. In general all the parents are well intended and are at Tamarack to support their children’s education.

I am not a perfect person, and do not expect any organization to be perfect, my only aim is to allow some transparency where the community may not and offer an honest look at some struggles I have had or observed with Tamarack. The school has clearly out grown their site, the class sizes are very large (many close to 30, perhaps more now). The facilities do not ‘include’ a playground, but the playground is a few blocks walk away, which means that the pre-K and sometimes kindergartens are not able to utilize the playground, and instead play out of the sun in the parking lot. Aggressive behavior is often overlooked which is a problem of many Waldorf schools, not just Tamarack. There is no testing, which can be a great thing, but also, many find great gaps in the education if they leave for a different school. The learning center is improving, but it has a long way to go to be able to accommodate the many varied needs of the students. If your child has been diagnosed with any sort of disability to earn one-on-one care, please do that and do not send them to Tamarack, they have no ability to appropriately work or care for many needs that are beyond the norm.