42 42xx Upton Ave S #308
Minneapolis, MN 55410

LHCS lost a core group of notable close knit teachers during our early years. We moved to raise our family in the neighborhood. The eldest son at the tail end of that group, and our youngest going through lower & upper afterwards. Aspects that made enrollment at Harriet very attractive. A citywide model and advocate for GT programming, a hands-on, cross-disciplinary & child-centered curriculum w imagination. Losing that body of visionary staff, coupled with embedded state testing and teaching to the test, LHCS didn't contain the coming tide. Both campuses were palpably and cheerfully more for the first. Mine experienced the same OK teacher for multiple yrs. Behavior problems rose noticably. Harriet's admin was significantly less responsive as years got on. Enrichment opportunities lack by comparison. All to say students who continue to have good opportunities w support from home will have the advantage. It may be too late to nip it in the bud as a carry-over to the high school where benchmarks and student experience is trending down. Great childhood memories and I would enroll again, but disheartening to experience the changes to curriculum and in the classroom.

Lake Harriet Lower is an excellent K-3 school in the Minneapolis Public Schools. The academics are well taught and the teachers are very good. However, because it has a very low poverty level, it gets no "extra" resources from the district. Your taxes pay for all the MPS public schools, they don't go directly to Lake Harriet.