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Some Montclair parents say the public school system fell short of supporting their children’s needs.
In this week’s episode of The Montclair Pod, hosts Farnoosh, Mike, and Ali tackle the most talked-about topic in town: education. From families pulling their kids from the district, to growing frustration over the new school calendar, to the tough teen summer job market, this episode explores why tensions are high and choices are more complex than ever for local families.
Switching to Private School, For Some Is a Reluctance
Holly Shaw, a Montclair parent, shares what it was like to realize her daughter’s needs weren’t being met at Montclair High School. Despite a deep belief in public education, her family ultimately moved her to a private school.
“There were just little to no resources for what she was experiencing,” Shaw, a member of the Board of Education, says. “It was kind of a decision that we were very reluctant to make as parents because we’re so passionate about public education.”
Danielle Neff, another Montclair parent, describes a similar journey. “We didn’t come to this lightly,” she says. For her family, making the switch from public to private education took years of weighing pros and cons—and a growing sense that the system wasn’t working for their child.
Grace Williams, a journalist and Montclair mom, is part of a community of families who moved to town for its strong special education services.
Her son thrived in Montclair’s Therapeutic Preschool, but when he entered kindergarten, concerns quickly surfaced. “Probably within a few weeks of starting school,” she recalls, “they started to mumble that it wasn’t looking too good for him.”
He now attends a private school for neurodivergent learners, funded by the district. Williams calls it both “a gift” and a sobering sign of the system’s limits.
“What they’re telling you is basically they can’t educate him with what they’ve got,” she says.
While grateful for the support, she acknowledges the painful reality: sometimes even the best public systems can’t meet every child’s needs.
“There was just little to no resources for what she was experiencing.”
Holly shaw, montclAIR PARENT AND BOE BOARD MEMBER
School Calendar Frustrations
Montclair’s Board of Education has officially approved the 2025–26 school calendar, choosing a version that includes more cultural and religious holidays—pushing the last day of school to June 25, 2026. While intended to reflect the town’s diversity, the decision came as a disappointment to many families who had supported a shorter calendar with fewer days off.
According to community moderator Danielle Neff, who runs the Montclair Moms, Dads, and Parents Facebook group, much of the frustration wasn’t about the holidays themselves—it was about how the decision was made. “They took a survey. They told us what the survey told them. And then they completely disregarded it,” Neff says. “Then why ask us?”
The district reportedly received over 1,700 survey responses, with the majority favoring the shorter option. Neff points out that while online sentiment appeared overwhelming, it’s hard to say whether that represented the broader community or just the most vocal. Still, she believes the drawn-out process and lack of clear communication left many parents feeling unheard. “There was probably a lot of opportunity for better communication around this entire thing from start to finish,” she says.
Neff’s takeaway? The calendar may be settled, but how it was handled has created lingering mistrust.
Summer Jobs Are Scarce – But Not Impossible
While summer jobs are harder to come by for teens this year, Carla Osbourne, a junior at Montclair High School, is proof that persistence—and planning—can pay off. After working at soccer camps in the past, Carla wanted something that would push her out of her comfort zone and help her build experience interacting with customers and adults. So back in the fall, she set her sights on a job in Montclair’s bustling restaurant scene.
During a birthday dinner at Egan & Sons, one of her family’s favorite local spots, her mom had an idea: why not apply there? Carla followed through. She and her mom spoke to a manager, who told them hiring would begin in the spring. Carla kept in touch, called back in March, and landed a hosting job soon after.
Her first shift was eye-opening. “Egan’s gets super crowded,” she says, “and I’d never worked in a restaurant before. But everyone was really nice, and I love seeing all the different people come through. I’ve been working there ever since.”
Carla juggles the job with a packed schedule of school, soccer, and babysitting. She says the key has been time management: “I do my homework during the week so that on Fridays I can work from 4 to 10. And if I’m tired after, I just go home. If not, I’ll hang out with friends.”
Her advice for other teens? Start early. “One of my friends started working as a sophomore, and that’s really smart. It gives you more time to get used to the job and build relationships before things get really busy your senior year.”
And the best part? That first paycheck. “It was like Christmas morning,” Carla says. “It felt so good to be able to buy my best friend a birthday present without asking my parents for money.”
