205 Gentlewoods Dr
Cary, NC 27518

As a parent of two students at Athens, we have had a great experience. Administrators and staff truly care about the well-being of students and encourage all students to get involved & pursue their passions. We feel that our students will be well prepared for college and have benefitted from a diverse student body.

The principal I feel is aggressive and disrespectful in her treatment of parents and students, and the number of enrolled kids at Penny Road appears to be plummeting since she started. I would not send any children with an IEP to this school since the previous vice principal left at the end of last academic year. With regards to teaching staff, we had some good, motivated teachers, and seen behavior of, I think, burned out teachers (e.g., having them watch a lot of TV or sit in silence), and we've seen a lot of teacher turnover, even middle of the year. None of my kids liked attending, and it has been a stressful experience.

I have two 6th graders and we are very happy with DDMMS so far. I love the core principles they follow and instill into the kids, I love how it is phone-free during school hours, and I have had nothing but good interactions with all staff who are very friendly and helpful. They also have fun club options - mine are loving Dungeons & Dragons club and Chess club - and look forward to the Minecraft/gaming/coding club. I actually wish they were MORE strict with things, such as dress code for example (I've seen a few too may crop tops and pajama pants than I'd like), but that is on parents more than a school to teach better basics.I'd say to be weary of older reviews because the school has apparently changed very much for the good over the years, with new principal, staff, and magnet status. Also know that this is a large school that feeds from three elementary schools, so it has all the same basic problems as all schools with underpaid teachers, underpaid bus drivers & shortage, underfunded food program, and you will always have poorly-behaved children. PLEASE do everything YOU can at home as a parent and a fellow citizen to support our public schools (especially with your vote ;) otherwise you cannot complain. We are all in this education and parenting thing together! :)