First Mountain Pre-School

My son attended First Mountain Preschool at two years old. I informed the staff that he is in speech therapy. After the first wk, the staff noticed my son struggling to communicate which caused him to act out. A staff member suggested I inquire about additional services through the West Orange School District and was referred to Betty Maddalena Early Learning Center. I am truly appreciative of the staff’s professionalism, kindness and honesty. My son is now 5 yrs old, his speech and behavior has improved tremendously because of BMLC’s amazing curriculum during the school year and First Mountain’s Summer Camp. If it wasn’t for the staff’s compassion, concern and mainly the Director’s referral my child would not be where he is today. First Mountain is the best pre-school in town! I have referred this school to several other Parents who are seeking to put their child in a transformational Pre-school learning environment with a heavy emphasis on literacy.

Extremely disappointed with our family's very short-lived experience at First Mountain Pre-School (Literally pulled my child out after the FIRST day). The Director (who happens to be mayor of WO) and Assistant Director are condescending and disrespectful people - The lack of professionalism and the microaggressions we've encountered are truly appalling. Their tone and approach made it clear that they felt entitled to speak to certain people in any manner they chose - I guess they felt that as a young Black couple, we were not supposed to be treated with the same respect as 'other' families—something we refused to overlook or ignore! This school is outdated in both its approach and its mindset, particularly when it comes to supporting diverse children with developmental delays or learning differences. If you are a parent, or specifically a family of color, looking for a nurturing, inclusive, and culturally competent staff/environment for your child, I strongly urge you to look elsewhere.

Horrible experience!!!! I had my son enrolled for only two days and immediately withdrew him. My wife and I explained our son is two years old and has never been in a daycare/preschool environment and we enrolled him two days a week for half a day to slowly get him accustomed to the routine. I dropped off my son on the first day and during pickup the head of the preschool (who is also the mayor of our town) comes and tells me that I need to get my son’s hearing checked because they would call his name and he wouldn’t answer and that he was crying all morning. I said his hearing is fine when he is home and he responds to his name when called and that it’s a new environment and that they need to be patient with him. On the second day I received the same complaints and the head of the preschool has the nerve to tell me that she doesn’t have the staff or resources to have a teacher or helper stay with him all day because the only way he stopped crying was to be carried. She even tells me that the parents of one kid who was enrolled there who is similar to him have found another daycare for him that’s more “age appropriate”. On the way home, my son kept saying food and immediately as we enter our house he ran to the kitchen table and started to eat some crackers that were leftover on the table. Upon further inspection of his bag I saw that they didn’t feed him any of his snacks that we sent with him. We called the daycare and the head of the daycare said they only have snack time once in the morning!!!! So if my kid is hungry and crying because he is hungry you’re not going to feed him for several hours just because it isn’t snack or lunch time!!!! He is only two years old!!!! Absolutely horrible treatment of my son and very unprofessional and quite frankly very passive aggressive/nasty comments by the director!!!! Do not send your kids here!!!

This Preschool is the best preschool in the area! My daughter is a straight A student in middle school and most of her peers from the school are on the honor roll as well. The teaching staff is kind, nurturing and creative. Their literature based program is wonderful and encouraged my daughter's love of books and reading. The daily routine made the transition to public school an easy and pleasant experience and I love the way that they incorporate math , science ect by making it a fun way to learn! The staff hasn't changed in this school for years and is a wonderful place to return and say hello every year!

Couldn't be happier with our experience at First Mountain! The teachers are creative, fun, responsible, & encouraging. I am amazed everyday with my child's projects, growing language, & newfound abilities. My child loves going to school at First Mountain! I know graduates who still visit regularly & talk about their fond experiences. First MountainPreschool is the only preschool for me (us)!