St. Rose Of Lima Elementary School

My kids started St. Rose in kindergarten and now I have kids in middle school and elementary. There has been a lot of changes since we started. We have experienced 3 principals in the school and there is always a problem with leadership in the school. They very well should have the parish priest as principal since any problems are directed to him. Leadership and accountability is sadly not present in this school. Yes, the principal is present for school functions but when decisions need to be made, it’s either ignored or a quick fix with a band aid but no solution is offered. The tuition is affordable and that is the only reason why we stayed but if I could rewind time, I should have not feared and considered other options. Note, the school has no support for student. There is no school nurse, counselors and if you have a child with learning disabilities please go elsewhere. They do not have the resources and as I have seen, families suffer. Some teachers however do care for the students but with some classes with bigger class sizes, I can say they are overwhelmed. I’m also surprised that for a private school, the field trips that they offer are minimal. No DC trips for 8th grade, and for elementary school kids, it is not the same as before. The electives for middle school are also very limited and there are no school clubs for kids who are not interested in sports.

It is cheaper than other private schools but you get what you pay for. Their middle school is great but they are lacking in elementary school. They lack teachers especially with sciences. They also don’t have a strong STEM program and not a lot of electives. It’s a small community and the kids are nice. One big problem we have is the lack of leadership. We have gone through 3 principals and the main problem is they give you the run around when there is an issue. I don’t understand why when there are major issues such as bullying and safety it is redirected to the parish priest when it’s a school issue. It’s also obvious that they favor some families. I do agree with the other comment, instead of appeasing a situation, they resort to “there might be other schools that fit your needs” situation. They lack the type of strong administration. There are teachers however who are good and they do have resource for children who needs help.

The education seems to be lacking compared to other schools in the area. The teachers don't seem to be as qualified as other schools in the area. This school doesn't have the ratings compared to other schools but they do offer extra activities. The plus is that they do ask for parents to volunteer to ensure that parents are involved with the kids and the school. There is no accountability for this involvement so the majority of parents just drop off and pick up their kids. The board members are working parents (Lawyers, Scientists, Photographers, Business Owners, Parents in the corporate world). The last reviewer should have fact checked before posting. However, board members or at least the leadership don't seem to be open to change. The same events happen every year regardless if parents complain, demand change and the attendance decreases. Is it laziness or just road blocks? There is favoritism. Students of the teachers or parents that donate to the school tend to get their pick on field trips or have their kids picked for performances. If you are staff at the school and have a kid attends, you will LOVE it. If you not on the payroll then don't plan on having your child be center stage. There is favoritism with staff and certain parents. There is a requirement to volunteer 40 hrs however there is no transparency to what opportunities are present. If you are not involved with the staff, you get last pick. The field trip change is in the right direction. In the past years, only the "favorite parents" got an invitation to chaperone field trips while other parents struggled to volunteer for Tuesday treats (that pays for field trips) and were not invited to attend field trips. Thank goodness they are moving in the right direction with this, but what about all the other opportunities? Communication is lacking. They use the platform of Gradelink. No one likes it. No one wants to use it. But they insist on using that for updates and communication, which leaves the majority of the parents in the dark, missing important dates or scrambling last minute. This circles back to the lack of change or open mindedness of leadership. Every school will have their issues. Some schools have more issues than others. This school has potential. With the current leadership and staff, it's not the best in Simi.

If you are a working parent, this will not be a good fit for you. (And how can you afford the tuition if you don’t work??) Although this school is all about the money, not even that helps working parents. Stay-at-home parents run the board and make all the decisions. New this year: Parents can’t even ask to be a chaperone on their child’s field trip unless they volunteer at certain school-day activities. That automatically cuts out working folks. Every time my daughter brings home paperwork from the school, it is another fundraiser, and the school never tells us where the money goes. We are now averaging 3-4 fundraisers EVERY MONTH! Constant nickel and diming, and nothing to show for it. And I’m still not sure why the tuition is as high as it is. Parents were told one of the fundraisers was to get the money to clean out the air ducts in the classrooms. Shouldn’t this be part of regular upkeep, and not a special need? Communication is nonexistent. I keep emailing the teacher, but she never responds. The quality of the education and programs here is sub-par. I had to hire a tutor for my older child who graduated here, because he struggled in high school. I will be moving my daughter to a charter or magnet school next year.

Terrible. It used to be such a good school. But the past few years, it has steadily gone toward being a school geared toward raising money constantly, and parents are never told where all the money goes. There are multiple fundraisers every month, and this is in addition to two large fundraisers, a $400 fundraising obligation, 40 hours of volunteering (which is very hard to do as a working parent), and higher tuition and fees. What has happened to St. Rose?