2330 N 56th St
Seattle, WA 98103

My two sons studied there after we moved from Azerbaijan to the United States, and at that time neither my children nor our family spoke English.The staff and teachers showed incredible care, patience, and support. Within just six months, both of my sons became fluent in English, which was an amazing achievement and a life-changing experience for our family.It has been almost three years since we left Seattle and moved to Philadelphia, yet both of my sons still remember Green Lake Elementary School with great love and appreciation. Ms. Nash (Rachel) continues to stay in touch with my son, and as a parent, this means so much to me. It shows how deeply the teachers truly care about their students.We are extremely grateful to Green Lake Elementary School for the kindness, dedication, and support they gave our family. I highly recommend this school to any family, especially those new to the United States.

The principal is hostile towards the kids and their parents, instead of focusing on the kids learning and fostering an inclusive environment he goes on crusades to ban backpacks, he punishes kids for having panic attacks, he gets rid of fun things that were brought in to get the kids engaged and playing with each other. He doesn’t respond to parent emails. Does your kid have a 504 plan? You’ll never hear a word from the 504 coordinator, and you have to contact each teacher individually to communicate what your child’s 504 plan entails. If you have a choice in which school to send your kid to. Don’t choose Hamilton.

McDonald’s vision emphasizes inclusion and social justice, but in practice, this is not reflected in the leadership under the current principal, Zoe Facilla. In my experience, her approach toward students and families who do not fit within her preferred “norm” has been biased and unsupportive. She has no interest in meeting the needs of students who require flexibility or who express themselves in ways outside traditional expectations.While students who are quiet and compliant may have a smooth experience, those who ask questions, set boundaries, or need accommodations often find their voices disregarded by staff including the principal, Zoe. The environment is very exclusive, and communication from the principal is performative rather than genuinely collaborative.It’s extremely frustrating and disappointing to see such a disconnect between the school’s stated values and the actual practices under current leadership. Families seeking a truly inclusive, student-centered community may want to explore whether McDonald’s current culture aligns with their expectations.

Very impressed with the teachers and staff. This school seems to have a very welcoming culture and a lot of options for AP courses and high level-math courses. It is a project based school, and students are encouraged to demonstrate their learning through a proejct, which preapres them for the future outside of just exams and essays. While the teachers are supportive, I find the grading and standards to be fairly stringent. That being said, they seem to genuinly want to help kids improve and often allow opportunities to revise assignemts after they recieve feedback, so good grades are a realistic possibility for any student who is willing to work hard and be open to feedback.