2859 E Olive Ave
Merced, CA 95340

My eldest child went through this school and my youngest is currently enrolled now. I immediately must warn you….BEWARE of the assistant principal! She will speak over you if you have a concern and make matters MUCH worse. She’s a nightmare. I definitely recommend skipping her and going straight to the head Principal for your concern. He definitely takes care of business and will treat you with respect. Unfortunately this school has A LOT of kid drama. Just in this past 2 weeks there have been 6-8 fights. It got so bad that our kids called us to pick them up cause they were scared. I pulled up to a long line out the door of upset parents waiting to sign their kid out after lunch. School never called to let us know what was going on. It’s just absurd. When it comes to teaching, some teachers can be helpful and some are obviously there to get a paycheck. They don’t care. Don’t believe me… go check out the schools math rating. Last time I checked the percentage of students achieving proficiency in math is 29% (which is lower than the California state average of 40%). At what point are we not going to start blaming the teachers for this insane percentage? My youngest kid’s math teacher will not accept ANY late HW even if sick. I have a ton of college classes under my belt (100 units plus) and I’ve never encountered a teacher like this one. During the student teacher meeting, she either looked at me with a blank stare or just repeatedly said no with a smirk when I asked her if there was anything my kid could do to make up for it. I could go on and on about it but I’ll just leave you with this reminder….. there is a reason this school has a 3/10 rating. Can not wait till my kid is done with this school. Good luck to all you other parents and just pray your child can get through this school without feeling mentally beaten down.

My daughter was assaulted several times and Ada Givens Elementary School in Merced, CA swept our complaints under the rug. Teachers give low scores at the beginning to later give higher scores giving false impression ofacademic progress thanks to their teaching. Teachers did not treat my child fairly and theCalifornia Department of Education routinely dismiss our complaints. School Principal is rude. Students disrupt teacher talking in class, skip class and strain the patience of teachers with rampant absences costing the school Federal attendance funds and causing teacher burnout. Celebrations involve loud music speakers pointed towards performing students causing Tinnitus(damage to ear nerves). My child scored near perfect score in IQ tests and transferred to a better school.

I have 2 students here. The one senior and one freshman. I like that it is the type of school where most students know each other from their younger days and yet, they have been welcoming to students like mine, who are transplants. Parents seem to be engaged, FFA seems great and there are lots of programs, clubs and pathways for students to explore.