Applied Scholastics Academy East Bay

My children attended this school for about a year and a half. During that time I witnessed what could only be described as a complete and total meltdown of a school.

My family moved to the East Bay solely so my children could attend this school. We were intrigued and excited about the mixed aged classroom and individualized educational plan that enabled children to learn at their own pace.

While in the beginning we saw gains in our children, by the end all we saw were red flags. The environment at the school had degraded from a positive academic one to one filled with yelling, screaming and swearing by the Director aimed toward the children as well as other staff. We tried our best supporting the Director and staff as it was a small school environment but when you question even once whether your child is in a safe place you know that they are not.

Upon leaving the school we enrolled our children into the affiliated homeschool program which utilized the same learning methodologies. From there we learned that it is impossible to separate teachings from the Church of Scientology from the academic program, something which we questioned when we first toured the brick and mortar school. Whether it be at the Applied Scholastics Academy of the East Bay or their affiliated homeschool program the teachings are incorporated without permission such as the application of "touch assist" for illness and injuries and/or "getting clear on a confusion". To a non-Christian Scientist these words hold very little meaning, to a Scientologist the meaning is far deeper than I can even begin to describe in this review.

Having said all of this, we did notify the authorities of Diana's behavior at this school and did receive a written apology from the Applied Scholastics HQ. But at the end of the day it is important for any parent considering this school to know that it is at its essence a parochial school where religion (from the Church of Scientology) and academics are intertwined, not simply a private academic school. Finally, it is important that children learn to love to learn and that children come first each and every day, a message that is severely lacking at this institution.

The summer program was not as described by Diana Doiel. I was very disappointed, as I discovered that Diana was working at another job and only taught at the school part-time, and I had other concerns about the summer program. I was also surprised by the Church of Scientology disclosure form they gave us after the session started. If they thought the use of Scientology materials was an issue warranting a disclosure form then why not disclose before registration? I cancelled after 1 week and reached an agreement with Diana on an appropriate refund, which was memorialized in subsequent email exchanges. She has not honored our agreement, has not issued any refund claiming tight cash flow, and now is not responding to my calls or emails. Very disappointed in the lack of integrity.

I don't even know where to start. I will provide more details later and I will try my best to not make it into a book but there were so many things not right with this school it's not even funny.

Here I go...

It was filthy
Diana the owner and during our time there was the main teacher. I was told she was planning on stepping down from the position of main teacher. Diana was one unstable individual I regret to say. I have never experienced a teacher like her. There were several complaints of her yelling at the students from the students as well as staff. Parents started looking into it and sure enough she would yell at the children like a mad woman! I mean it was crazy how she would completely lose her cool. She had no self-control...Not professional at all. She would scare the crap out of the children. Needless to say once her problem with her lack of self control was addressed, she promised parents things would change and she was working on making things better. She had parents support but that didn't last because then after a couple weeks she went back to her old angry ways. So that's when children started being snatched out of the program by their parents.

Academically it was nice in the beginning and she was helping students overcome some big bumps in the road. Parents were proud of their kids progress and the kids were proud as well. Too bad that didn't last long. I can go more into detail about that when I update but I needed to get it out about Diana's anger issues that unfortunately the students would see up close.

Oh and the teacher assistants/aids at that time???? Joke. One who hadn't graduated high school herself and actually said that she didn't know how to teach place values so the kids had to wait for Diana to get there so they could do their math. Really? And at this time Diana was....I'm not sure but she was barely there and you didn't know when she'd show up. You can't do that when your staff is completely incompetent of teaching and knows little to nothing about what the students are learning. It became a very poor excuse for a school. So glad that experience is over.

ASA is as good as it gets when it comes to all round child development. From classroom learning to daily life lessons and discipline- ASA provides it all. My girls went there for the afternoon after school program and always looked forward to spending the entire day at ASA - not just after school. They also did the summer program at ASA and did not want it to end! Diana D, the director is second mom to all the kids at ASA. She is an excellent educator and also an excellent mentor.

Besides teaching, Diana also offers the kids a HEALTHY meal plan each and every day which includes international fares. Yum!!!

ASA is the place to go to if you are looking for a safe, secure yet goal oriented place for your elementary- middle-highschool children!

New to Alameda when my 1st child was entering 1st grade, I was in search of a good afterschool program. After research of several programs, I was enticed by the innovative, diverse, flexible, and advance curriculum that Applied Scholastics Academy (ASA) has to offer. 3 years later, both of my daughters (now 8 and 6 yrs old) attend ASA after school and full time in the summer. They thoroughly enjoy and look forward to going to ASA. As a parent, I love the fact they they have their homework completed early with a good comprehension of their work! At every grade level, their teachers at their regular school commend both of my girls for their strong aptitude with their skills assessment consistently at advanced levels. I attribute that to the early development skills learned at ASA and many kudos to Diana, (ASA's Director) especially! Thank you Diana and ASA staff! ;)

Moved to Alameda because my kids went to the same school in Sac and Los Angeles. This one is great. My kids get dressed on Saturday to go to school and are disappointed when they find out they have the day off. Diana Doiel clearly cares and the curriculum is thorough. Very good for very bright students who needs lots of work to keep them occupied. Very happy.

My kids go to this school and I am very pleased with the way they read and the excitement about going to school. They dress for school on Saturday and are disappointed when they find out they can't go. They also feed them breakfast, lunch and snacks which is great. Thanks, Diana.