5280 E Appian Way
Long Beach, CA 90803

As a parent, it breaks my heart to say this, but this school has a serious issue with diversity, equity, inclusion and families deserve to know the truth before enrolling their children.Over the years, I’ve noticed a consistent pattern of racial bias that has impacted my child’s confidence and sense of belonging. It’s something many other parents have privately shared with me as well. Even staff members have acknowledged concerns about how the school handles diversity.Here are just a few of the issues:• Performances & representation: In school events, African-American students are consistently placed on the ends, never centered, and rarely more than two or three are included.• Lack of diverse staff: There are no African-American or Latino teachers on staff. The only representation seems to be in yard duty or crossing guard roles.• Unequal discipline: There was an incident where an African-American boy was bullied, yet he was sent home while the other child involved (who was not African-American) received no consequence at all. This is not the first time I’ve witnessed disparities in how children are disciplined.• Daily environment: If you are African-American, prepare to feel uncomfortable at pickup. There is a noticeable energy of being watched, judged, or looked up and down by others including staff.To be fair, the school is located in a nice area, the uniform policy is convenient, and there are some truly wonderful teachers doing their best. But those positives do not outweigh the deep-rooted cultural issues that continue to affect children of color.Every child deserves a safe, inclusive, supportive school environment. Unfortunately, this school has a long way to go in addressing hidden racism, unequal treatment, and representation. I hope the administration takes these concerns seriously, because families of color deserve better