Bean Tree Learning

Posted: December 30, 2021

I write this review as an extremely disappointed parent of a 4yr old and a 18 month old. We have just taken the decision to withdraw both our kids from BeanTree Learning at their Ashburn campus after spending a disappointing 6 months there. There are multiple reasons for our disappointment but the top 3 reasons are highlighted below:

1. - [ ] They are by far the most expensive child care center in the Loudoun County VA, with average tuition being 25-30% higher than the other good-quality centers in the neighborhood. And yet, they not only pay the lowest salaries to their teachers but also don’t do anything for them during the holidays period or special occasions. They also don’t spend much on marketing, so guess what who is pocketing the all the extra revenue!
2. Their leadership team, namely owner Jennifer Bower and Director Jamie Guida, are extremely unresponsive to parents’ concerns, to the point where they come across as rude and callous. When we toured the school at the start of 2021, there were all sorts of nice things about the school mentioned to us, specifically how they put a lot of focus on specialities like music, Spanish and technology for their pre-kindergarten program, and how all of that learning more than justifies the premium fee. But what was not mentioned to us at that time that they had lost all of their speciality teachers and these specialities were on pause till they could find new teachers. Once our kids joined the program, we found out this sad reality to our surprise. But was more shocking is that every time we tried asking them about the status of finding the new teachers, we were looked down upon as “those nagging parents” and there was never a straight and polite response provided to our genuine questions. After all we were paying premium fee (without any kind of reduction or rebate because they had no teachers for 6 months) and yet Jamie and Jennifer never had the courtesy to reach out to the parents and provide an honest update other than saying “we are trying”. I understand the harsh realities of COVID and was definitely willing to cut them some slack because of the pandemic, but their attitude to this entire mismanagement was, to put it in one word - belittling.
3. Lastly, some of their teachers (I won’t name any) pay no attention at all to what kids are doing in their free time.

This school over-promises and profoundly under-delivers. Please be extremely cautious if you are considering them.

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 30, 2021

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

Posted: December 28, 2020

This is the best school in the area. My son has been going there for almost 2 years and he absolutely loves the school and his teachers. We are really sad to leave because we are moving to a different state but I cannot praise BeanTree enough for their excellent academic program for kids, attentive and caring teachers, and caring and accommodating staff. We stayed at school during the pandemic because we felt comfortable enough to bring our toddler there. What's great is that they actually have a cleaning crew, separate from teachers, who dedicate 100% of their attention to keeping the school clean. Meanwhile, teachers only focus on students. Oh, by the way, their teachers have bachelor's/master's degrees in children education, music, arts, etc. It's a fantastic school for kids!

Posted: November 12, 2014

Outstanding school for children of all ages who need a stimulating academic environment to be success as they conquer private or public school later in life.

Posted: June 7, 2014

Bean Tree Learning has continued to go downhill with it's new management team, I would not recommend working here or bringing your children here,.

Posted: April 7, 2014

I love BeanTree, as do my kids, who have gone there since they were infants (my oldest is now four). They have excellent teachers, who are highly educated, low ratios, and a director staff that cares. My children look forward to school every day!

Posted: January 5, 2014

Directors are not friendly and they berate their teachers. They do not relate to the parents either. This school is all work and no play high expectations on teachers and students. There are many good teachers there who go the extra mile. It is nice knowing teachers have CPR training and most have college degrees.

Posted: November 27, 2013

It looks like since the new management took over there has been a large number of turnovers in the classrooms. The management does not seem friendly anymore nor respectful to teachers as I observed the main Executive Director talking down to a teacher in front of me. Too bad, because it used to be friendly and wonderful as mentioned by our friends but not anymore

Posted: September 24, 2013

i saw children from bean tree learning center in the dinosaur park. They were there for short field trip, I guess. It seems that teacher do not really interfere with children's playing, even about pushing. Good thing that I observed was, after twenty minutes of playing in the hot summer day, all children were offered with water.

Posted: July 23, 2013

We recently moved to the chantilly location for my 2 year old son. He has taken really well to this school. Teachers are friendly and polite. Our old preschool merritt academy was a big disappointment. The learning Is more hands on and my son seems happy to go here each day! I'm really Glad we changed to this school.

Posted: August 3, 2012

My child has gone to Beantree since the age of two and he is now eight. He attended their wonderful full-time private kindergarten program which gave him a huge head start in first grade. He has consistently been placed in advanced reading, which I believe directly correlates to the strong foundation he received at Beantree. Our child feels safe and loved here and BEGS to go to their summer camp, which has a long waiting list (another testament to their program and how so many want to be there). We have tried other summer camp programs but nothing quite compares to Beantree. The summer camp director who is mentioned by name in a previous review (which I believe is against the rule here) is just a wonderful lady and treats all of the kids like they are her own. I have a huge respect for her because she has the best combination of love and firmness (with a huge dose of fun) required of someone who works with children all day long. I can go to work worry-free because of Beantree and have total peace of mind knowing that he is safe and happy. The only problem I have is that he doesn't want to leave when I get there :) Kudos to BT, keep up the awesome job!