Dear Editor,
Please allow me a space in your newspaper to reveal what the parents of Maes School are experiencing ever since the ownership of the school changed in the late 2024.
Let me first state that while we sympathize with the owners following the March 2025 fire, the owners are now exploiting parents in the worst possible way.
I will explain. When the school reopened for the September 2025 term, without informing parents, the school held a back-to-school drive where they took two photographs of each child at the cost of $5,000. Parents were only noticed weeks after the photoshoot when it was time to pay and collect. The Christmas photoshoot was the same $5,000 when it was previously $2,000.
Secondly, the school was exposed by a parent last year for selling photocopied books as part of a package for $40,000 when other stores had it for not more than $15,000. Also, the PE jersey they sold for $5,500, was selling for $1,500. However, when their supplier was revealed, the school switched to another sewer/printery, now the quality of the uniforms is horrific.
The PE jersey for instance, after three washes, its no longer wearable. It becomes thin and easy to tear. In some instances, the ink on the jerseys spread after the first wash, before the child even wears it. The threads on the uniform dress and PE pants rip easily. Despite raising all these issues with the management of the school, they refuse to refund or exchange—despite the fact that the children have not even worn the uniforms.
Third, the washrooms are dirty. A parent whose child is in Grade One said the little girl contracted a UTI weeks after she kept complaining how dirty the washrooms were. I have personally witnessed this. One day I took my son inside, I had to run out and find a nearby café. Fecaes were in almost all of them, urine on the floor and on the toilet seats. I asked the cleaner, who was sitting outside, if she can clean one but she said this particular washroom is not the one she was assigned to.
Fourth, can you imagine a little five and six-year-old sitting in a classroom for lesson until 4PM? Tell me why such a small kid needs lesson at this age. The teachers are annoyed. But of course, no one will come out and say anything. While parents have the option to have their child stay back for lesson, they are made to believe if the child does not stay for lesson, he or she will miss out on important work.
With all that have been happening at Maes School, the previous administrator resigned and opened her own school, Cindy’s Academy. Many parents are now waiting to see the new institution’s performance at NGSA before they switch.
This is all for now.