Mt Alvernia Academy, Chestnut Hill | Fees, Rankings, Address, Admission, Vacancies, Reviews & More

I am an alum of MAA, along with my sister and nieces. We were happy to enroll our daughter in K-0 there this fall after not receiving a place through the Boston Public School lottery, which was our preferred long-term destination. One month into the year we received a delayed admission into BPS. After some consideration, we decided to transfer our daughter to BPS because we would likely also lose the spot next year if we declined now.
What followed was a shocking lack of compassion from MAA. Before asking in any way how they could help with the transition they sent a semi-threatening email outlining our contract with the school, which demands full payment of the $10,000 tuition. Yes, they forced us to pay $10,000 for one month of school.
I give no credence to their claim of “We need to meet our budget or our teachers won’t be paid.” Within a day of our notification of withdrawal MAA was loudly advertising SPOTS AVAILABLE FOR THIS YEAR! on social media. I also know for a fact that they later added at least one student to the class to replace my daughter, likely nearly doubling the $10,000 they collected from us. So I guess that budget came out pretty good after all, huh? Better than ours, anyway.
The hilltop location is beautiful and I am saddened that my own memories there are now tainted. I warn anyone entering into a contract with them to expect no leniency if you decide to alter the course of your child’s education in the way you see best. Probably it was foolish of me to have expected better from a Catholic institution.

We have loved our two years at Mount Alvernia for our daughter (age 9) and two sons (5 and 3). While I could list many positives of the school, the two key aspects which sets it apart from other schools is its extremely dedicated and caring staff and very well behaved, sweet kids at all grades. It is such a comfort to know that are children are given top notch academics but also being cared for emotionally and spiritually in a safe environment. Our 9 yo was bored in Lexington schools and is challenged by MAA’s nearly personalized curriculum. Our 5 yo whom came to the school two years ago with learning delays has excelled and is now reading fully on his own. And our 3 yo just loves going into his preschool every day which thankfully has the same hours as the big school which means one drop off/one pick up. If you are shopping around for a school, I encourage you to visit MAA and see for yourself. I am also happy to answer any specific questions.

We are thankful to have found such a wonderful school for our three children. We have two children who graduated from Mount Alvernia in recent years, and one currently in second grade. Mount Alvernia offers a wonderful caring community with dedicated teachers and staff who truly care about the children.

The expectations are high. My two graduates were well prepared for academic success. As a non-Catholic family, we have always felt comfortable at Mount Alvernia and I have always appreciated the emphasis on morals and treating others with kindness and respect. By the time that my youngest graduates, I will have spent 15 years as part of the MAA community. It is a special place and if you want your child to have a wonderful education, with an emphasis on values, in a warm community, you can’t beat Mount Alvernia Academy.