256 Element Rd
San Jose, CA 95113

The administration in this school is ridiculous and incompetent. I was getting bullied in January to the point I got into a fight. It was 1:1 but then the girls friends jumped in after the teacher came they ran away. I stayed and went to the office to take responsibility for my actions. Of course I got suspended but they didn’t even try to catch the girls. The next day they didn’t even look for them when I was told by others they attended school. My parents had to go to the district to get the girls in trouble. Only two of the girls got suspended when the video got leaked and the district found it. That was a week later! The vice principals lied to my family saying they will look into this but they didn’t the district did! After a while things calmed down until the girl friends started to get involved. No matter how much I tried to contact admin and they wouldn’t respond. On this Monday a friend of the girl with a group of people approached aggressively with phones out. I was threaten with violence and how they were going to beat me. My older sister had to step in and tell the to back away. Thankfully one of the vice principal was around BUT instead of telling the girls to stay (they all ran away) he started to yell at my sister. The girl who threaten did got sent to the office but was not punished. Same day a picture was posted of me and my sister with nasty writing on it was on insta. What’s did admin do?? Nothing. She got talked to but according to the school policy cyber bullying is horrible and more than a talking would happen. Today the same girl (who threaten me) and the original girl were following my friends/sister and I. Told the office but they didn’t do anything about it. The only few times they listened or did something only happened because my parents had to go to the district to get it done. I have heard other kids stories about bullying and the school never doing anything. I’m great full I have supportive teachers but there only so much they can do. Overall the schools administration are very dismissive, uncaring, and rude to my family. The principal is the one who is the most rudest to my parents. The school has gone downhill with more fights, lighting small fires, firecrackers, and etc. My family is going above the school with this issue because they are not listening or doing anything. They are supporting bullies. With these people in charge kids are starting to loose control. This might not get read but why not put it out there?

Am a 7th grader as of now, there are fights almost everyday and not only that but so called "gangsters" have gangs inside the school which is crazy to me. No one treats you with respect other than the teachers and racial slurs are thrown around constantly, in class and on the quad. Kids who don't fit in are picked on and bullied, I have seen them get pushed into a locker, tripped and verbally harrased, do your kids a favor and don't send them here.

Test scores are not the only, nor are they the best measure of student success! If you're looking for high test scores, then go to a school that teaches to the test. At Horace Mann, students are taught how to be life-long learners using the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program. The students are active participants in their learning, with an enthusiastic team of teachers and support staff working together to help all of the children progress. There are many after school clubs and activities for the students sponsored by the PTO, parents work with teachers to bring art into the classrooms (despite a lack of district funding), and non-native Spanish speaking students have a weekly Spanish class. The school has an amazing facility with a jewel of a library, two computer labs, and a multipurpose room with a stage for student productions. Special events like Multicultural day, Day of Science, and community read-ins all support building curiosity and enthusiasm for exploring the world. The diversity of the student body and the staff are a great asset to this downtown school. Our kids haven't had any problems with bullying, and in fact report that the staff are quick to head off problems and work with the students to promote positive peer interactions. My experience volunteering at the school has shown me a lot of the behind the scenes effort from the teachers and administration, and I am constantly amazed with how much they do with such a limited amount of resources and so many needy kids. Don't base your opinion just on test scores - they don't tell you the whole story. Call the school for a tour and meet with the staff - that will give you a much better picture than the numbers.