Kumon Math and Reading Center of San Ramon

Oh yes, the lady who when my son went in to apply for a tutoring job a few years ago told him she had no vacancies and then hired a female the very next day. And when my son went back with a letter of recommendation from his college tutor she got angry at him and told him flat out in front of a class full of kids and tutors that ‘people like him’ I.e. People with physical disabilities should be packing bags at Safeway across the street… Charming. But I suspect most of the people who send their children to Kumon will not care about this because it is more important that their kids get into Harvard than what life lessons the teacher is also giving.

I totally agree with Lena’s review! And to add to that. My daughter has been going to this center for 4 years for Reading and it has helped her so much. The staff there is friendly and Sue, the manager is very helpful and cares a lot about any concerns you may have of your child. My daughter’s comprehension skills improved and now she really enjoys reading and writing stories and essays! Kumon reading also made her understand the material she was learning in school in a simpler way! I definitely recommend this Kumon center!

Ms. M is an amazing influence in my kids’ lives. Our 10 and 7 yr old girls have been going to this center for 4 years now and we never regret having made that decision. Apart from the many benefits of the Kumon program, Ms. M. brings knowledge, experience, and wise counsel to our children’s progress. Just going and talking to her makes me feel like a more responsible parent. She always has advise and guidance and like other reviewers said, seems to carefully track all kids progress, not just the «squeaky» wheels. The sheer number of students (1000s) who have been going to this center over more than a decade speaks volumes about how good Ms. M. is.
I attribute my girls supreme confidence in school to the steady progress they have made under Ms. M’s tutelage.
While managing 1000’s of kids, its statistically impossible that some parents will not be dissatisfied .but that’s anecdotal evidence. Don’t let the negative reviews misguide you. See for yourself and make your own judgement.

When you read the negative reviews posted here please keep in mind that Sue Monahan has been managing Kumon centers for over twenty years, and as her students proved it countless times, she does it with amazing success. She multitasks, remembers her students by names, arranges wonderful award ceremonies and is always ready to talk to parents about child’s progress. Some people apparently struggle with Sue’s upfront manner of talking and honesty. I personally prefer that to the excessive political correctness that delights us with spoken lies.
Two years ago I decided to withdraw one of my children from the reading program. My youngest struggles with a number of learning difficulties and attention problems. Sue respected my decision, but suggested I wait until the summer is over. My child has successfully completed many levels since then, read wonderful literature, and even though the disabilities didn’t disappear, she is an advanced student in all subject areas. My other daughter will be finishing Kumon reading program this school year. She’s in seventh grade and is working on tenth grade math.
Before enrolling make sure you realize that Kumon program aims to teach the kids to teach themselves. That is not to say that the center doesn’t offer support and guidance, but rather to let the children acknowledge their innate intelligence and instill self-​confidence.
Our family has had tremendous success at this center, and we’re very grateful to Sue for running the center as well as she does. A few months ago we moved farther away, but will be finishing both programs at this location.

My kids started at Kumon when they were 2^nd grade & Kindergarten. Their math & reading have improved tremendously. My son qualify into GATE and my daughter in advanced math. I believe Kumon has helped them achieve this.

Ms. M at this Kumon center is very involve with her students. My daughter has been here since she was 6 yrs old and the program has helped her excel in school tremendously in math and language arts. She provides positive feedback at every teacher/​parent conference and we are very happy that we enrolled our daughter at this Kumon center.

I had a private tutor for my child which I paid XXX amounts of dollars and with zero results. My Husband and I were extremely frustrated and my Child was falling further behind.
We made the switch to Kumon about a year ago. What I find works for my child is the constant repetition and the immediate feedback. I can see what my child’s issues and problem areas in her Reading and Math when I go through her Kumon Homework.
The owner is very knowledgeable about Kumon and how to gauge your child’s progress.
So far so good. I just wish I would have started my child in Kindergarten versus 2^nd grade. I know she would have been further ahead than her classmates.

i’ve ran my own business for over 20 years. i think customer service is the only thing that separates a good business for a bad one. i am proud of the 31 Unilocal reviews for my business which are all 5 stars. with this being said, sue at kumon is all about money. god forbid you decide to discontinue her class, you will see a different side of sue. but being profit driven is fine with me, we all need to make money. due to personal reasons (which we should not have to explain to sue) we informed sue that we would like to discontinue. she immediately began to quote her policy book (which i assume she has to refer back to quite often since it sits right on her front counter) «you know that we require a 30 day notice so you will have to pay for next months too!» we said if thats your policy thats fine. she has the nerve to say” well i guess money isnt an issue for you” in a very very sarcastic tone. is she for real??? then looks over to my wife and says” do you have a solution for this??? do you? then she looks to my 11 year old daughter and continues to repeat the question over and over again (about 10 times). what in the world is she talking about… my daughter, very frightened, looked over to mom with confusion and tried not to look at sues angered face. im guessing we’re not the first one to quit on her and this very much frustrates her. to add insult to injury she tells us that she so regrets advertising because it draws to a particular nationality that she doesnt like to deal with. what??? can she say these things? we will also take it up with the kumon corporate office to file a complaint, the harm has already been done to our family and its very sad. i just hope that she some how learns her lesson and doesnt do it to anyone else. shes a horrible business person who has anger management issues.

My older son has been going to Kumon since he was four and now for a little over two years now. Kumon has helped him tremendously with his reading and math where he is more advanced than other students in his grade.
Sue’s demands excellence from all aspects of her business. This starts with her, goes to her staff and then to her students as well. At first I was a little taken aback by how straight forward and blunt she was. She reminds students to be quiet so other students in a stern manner. She is not what I would call «warm and fuzzy.» She runs a tight ship and expects nothing but the best from everyone.
So she’s not warm and fuzzy. What makes her good? One can only guess how many students she has. Probably over one thousand. Yet she knows the name of every student by name. She constantly speaks to students on their progress and then meets with parents to discuss improvement points for their child. She doesn’t water anything down. When my son had some difficulty, she was very patient with me in brainstorming ideas to help my son out. After a few weeks, she touched base with me telling me how my son has progressed since our last meeting.
When speaking with her, she has genuine care for her students wanting them to achieve more. At the slightest sign of any slippage in progress, she has immediately brought it to my attention and partnering up with me to help my son.
Knowing that Kumon has someone who knows what she is doing, demands excellence, and wants the best in her students, I highly recommend coming here.

We started going to Danville Kumon in November of 2013. Sue Monahan has been a terrific inspiration to my 13 and 15 year old kids. They have both struggled for years in math, not having a good grasp of the basics. The schools can only spend so much time with the kids and some need more attention and repetitive tasks.
Sue has worked closely with us to ensure the kids are not overloaded but that they also take this seriously and commit. She has been wonderful to work with and has treated my kids with the utmost respect. She is extremely complimentary of my parenting skills and motivates me to not lose hope.
With this said, this is the first time in all their years of school that they each have an A+ in Math. Not only that, they are both straight As. This has never happened before and we are thrilled. The kids have confidence and are now checking their own grades and making sure they keep these grades up. The Math improvement was tremendous and re-​learning the basics will allow them to move forward and keep learning.
Sue is a tremendous teacher and cares so much for the kids and their success. She is a former teacher and only wants the best for the kids. She doesn’t do this job for the money, she does this to help the kids and fill a passion of her own.
I would highly recommend Sue Monahan’s Kumon to all parents who are struggling to help their kids with Math and Reading.
Patrice M.

After the harrowing experience I had, I am really surprised why any parent would want to set foot in Sue Monahan’s Kumon centre, let alone send their kids there. I had to discontinue sending my kids to Kumon due to some personal reasons and I got nothing short than a third degree from Sue. Other then some really rude and vicious remarks by her, I was told that I shouldn’t «smile» at her while canceling as I had spoiled her day by making her lose business. Are you kidding me? Who talks like this? That too in front of all the parents and kids that were present there. It was such a humiliating experience. If Sue Monahan is a representation of education and what Kumon stands for then she is in no position to be a role model or have an important responsibility as the head of a Kumon centre. Ms Sue Monahan, I wasn’t trying to smile at you while you were being rude and condescending, I just happen to have a sunny disposition. It’s a shame that YOU don’t smile more, it would make a huge difference to your business and the pathetic 1 star reviews that seem to dominate your Unilocal page (rightfully so!) Parents beware!

My wife just told me about the appalling experience that she had when she went to cancel. I cannot believe that someone who heads a franchise of a respectable organization like Kumon speaks to their customers in that manner. Is Sue, genuinely interested in enriching children’s learning experience OR all she cares about are the dollars she rakes in every month. She actually told my wife, «Don’t smile» at me because I am losing business ?? Are you kidding me ?? You need to get your head examined Sue. If anything you should have been empathetic with our situation.
We cancelled due to personal reasons, but now that we look back, we are so glad we cancelled. I would never want my children to be around someone like Sue. Forget about her educating my children.
I am going to take this up with the corporate Kumon office. I don’t think an individual who is unstable should be around children let alone educating them.

The woman here yelled at my child just for not showing his work on a simple problem. Its also very expensive for what they are teaching my son. My son finished a level and they repeated the whole level again.

Sue Monahan is the Owner/​Instructor of this Kumon Center as well as the one in Danville (Blackhawk). All I can say is that this woman is rude, confrontational, arrogant and argumentative. I have had multiple arguments with her regarding payment issues (overcharging) and like the other Reviewer mentions — she forces you to sign up for longer programs so that she can make more money. This woman is also highly unprofessional — On several occasions, she has argued with me during parent/​instructor conferences. I have also witnessed her yell at her staff in front parents and kids. There are many other Kumons in the area and I will be removing my child from this one and signing them up at another one.

Be aware of the owner. She is $$$$ hungry. She wants to sign all kids up for 12 to 18 months program as a minimum. If she feels you will cancel sooner than that, watch out for the attitude.