Higher Ground Education Inc - Lake Forest, California

Stacy S.

If I could give zero, I would. It's an umbrella company with at least two underneath it. They built too many schools too fast and screwed way too many families and employees in the end. Guidepost is closing all over the country because the lack of the their (Higher Ground) financial responsibility. The former CEO and anyway that works for this company is in it for the money and to make sure they are covered. Ask anyone a question (for example, Regional Managers/Leads), you don't get an answer. Run from them....as an employee and parent.

Tom M.

Company that runs guidepost Montessori, my daughter was enrolled but due to high turnover we pulled her, gave adequate notice, then never received my deposit back and now they sent me to collections for a month she didn't go. This company is a scam, you can't find a phone number to contact them, and no one ever answers any way you respond. Money hungry crooks.

Jayson S.

What a joke of a company just found out via email that my sons school and the place my wife works is closing at the end of May because of the company's stupid decision to open more schools then what they can afford. I guessing all of this schooling that the ceo,coo,supervisors.etc non of them took a accounting classes now my child and my wife are out of an education and a job thanks a lot for nothing best wish to the great teachers my son had there and office staff is amazing individuals but for the rest of the people that run this crap show sucks to be you when you go out of business and have a reputation of failing.
you dont belong in the education sector your the reason people don't want to become teachers anymore by doing shady crap like this

Autumn C.

Higher Ground Education is poorly managed and putting your child into one of their programs is risky. At the Tulsa, OK location for Guidepost Montessori, we had three different heads of school in less than a year. They are closing at least 4 locations because of their incompetence. They told parents just a couple days before Christmas that the school was shutting down on January 31st. They used to care about the staff and the children, but that's not the case anymore. I highly encourage that you look elsewhere if you strongly value a stable learning experience for your child. This company does not deserve your dollars. Look elsewhere.

Broghan G.

We invested our son’s safety and development into a Guidepost school. We took the risk of joining the school when it opened because we believed in the mission. The school announced its closing less than 2 years later.

The staff received no advanced notice. Notice was sent out less than a week before Christmas, with only 1 month before closing.

If Higher Ground Education cared, they would floated by for one more month and announced closure in January. They are a huge company, they could have afforded the capital required to stay open a few more weeks. It will be impossible for families to tour new schools for their children when they’re closed for the holidays. Higher Ground Education couldn’t have managed this any worse.

Lisa S. J.

I withdrew my son from Guidepost Lloyd location with his last day set for 12/31/2023. They only offer 5 half days or 5 full day a week options for his age group. When I gave my withdrawal notice, they said they would make an exception for him to keep him at the school and would offer us a 3-day per week tuition. I declined because they had a ton of turnover and changes in staff in the short amount of time I was there. My son also had a fall in their care which resulted in a hospital visit, stitches and a big medical bill. I had been paying 5 day a week tuition since he enrolled, however, my son was only attending 3 days a week so the last stitch effort to keep him their by 'making an exception' made it obvious they were concerned about losing tuition. It would be very unfair to other families if they gave me that option but continued to deny other families a 3 or 4 day a week option. I had paid for my sons last month up front which I was supposed to be reimbursed for since the month of December had already auto-charged the month prior. They had to close the school for his last month because the heater was broken and they promised all families they would be reimbursed for the full month. Long story short, they ended up direct depositing the funds they owed me into someone else's account which I have zero access to. I made every effort including multiple emails and phone calls to ensure it would deposit into my personal checking account, which they confirmed but then still made the huge mistake. Their team admitted fault but after months of follow up on my end, they told me they will not be reissuing a new check to correct it. My distaste for Guidepost Montessori and Higher Ground Education is due to their unethical practice. I truly cannot believe how poorly they have handled situation. It is very clear that their priority is money and not a commitment to provide the best possible service and support to families in which they claim. Ray Girn, CEO, has yet to resolve this or make any effort to have his team resolve this.

Anita T.

They don't care about education, childcare, or families. They care about money. And because of mismanagement and greed this company is falling apart. Don't enroll your children in any of their programs!

Tom W.

Company scams people for their money then closes centers and doesn't refund customers.