118 Interstellar
Irvine, CA 92618

Our family was disappointed with how my child’s 3rd grade class has been managed this year. From the first day of the school year, the class was assigned a long-term substitute due to the teacher’s maternity leave. We requested placement in a classroom with a permanent teacher to ensure stability, but this was denied by both the principal and the district. Unfortunately, within just the first month of school, the substitute teacher was replaced with another substitute. This means the children have had to experience multiple teacher changes, causing emotional disruption and inconsistency in their learning environment. When the principal came to the class to announce the change in substitute teachers, she explained it to the children as “the importance of change and being flexible.” While these are valuable life skills, expecting 8-9-year-old children to process frequent teacher changes as a positive lesson is not realistic. At this age, students need stability, routine, and a consistent teacher they can build trust with not constant disruption in the classroom environment. We are sharing this experience, so other families are aware of how Portola Springs Elementary and the district handle classroom placement and teacher coverage. While the school has a good reputation, our family’s experience has shown that the well-being and stability of the students are not always prioritized. We hope the district will take accountability and improve how they handle situations like this in the future.

Personally I think I've had the best experience in this school out of all the other schools I've attended here in California, as well as back in my home country. It might not be fair to compare schools in Glendale and the post-soviet elementary schools from my childhood to a neat and well funded school in Irvine, but I truly didn't have that many negative experiences here (by my own standards). Frankly though, if you were to ask some of my friends and peers, they might give you a very different answer, but that's their story to tell and not mine.

We’ve had a great experience with Cadence Park School. Among the elementary options in the Orange County Great Park area, this has been our preferred choice.The school has a welcoming, well organized environment, and there is strong parent involvement. The school continues to improve, with recent additions like a new building that provides more learning space for students. It has also been encouraging to see the school’s rating improve over time from 7 to 8 and now 9 out of 10.My older child recently participated in both the Puma Market and the Science Olympiad program for 4th grade and up. These were her first experiences with both programs, and they were truly meaningful for our family. Through Science Olympiad, she was exposed to advanced topics and learned from dedicated coaches and materials. In the Puma Market, she learned how to attend meetings, take notes, collaborate with a partner, calculate costs, and even take on a sales role during the event.We feel grateful to have had the opportunity to be part of this school community. Overall, we have been very happy and truly appreciate the supportive and engaging environment.