Branch St
Abingdon, VA 24210

The principal at this school cares more about numbers than the well being of the child. Children are not watched appropriately on the playground and are sent home covered in dirt, ripped clothing and bruises with no notice of how it happened. They require a doctor's note for every stomach bug or head cold regardless of whether the pediatrician can do anything for them or not. They expect a child to go to an appointment anyway, taking away from their time to rest to sit in an office all for a piece of paper because it's all about the numbers. My child is learning at an acceptable rate but at age 5 he is already hating school and asking to go to a new one which is concerning. They lack compassion and understanding and will redirect any accountability for their own mistakes. We were called in for a meeting due to missing "more than days unexcused" and when I received the letter showing the dates (received it the night before the meeting) there were 3 days that were counted unexcused that we had turned doctor's notes in for. I called and left a voicemail stating that they had been turned in days ago and the following day (day of the meeting which I had to schedule time off for) they miraculously were found in a folder somewhere. I get a call back and was told oopsy! nevermind we found them and we no longer need to have the meeting. I had other concerns that I wanted to address and said I would be keeping the meeting. The entire time the principal showed no remorse or empathy for the situation that they had created and kept going back to how many days he has missed (even though we were still within the limits). I explained that I don't take my child to the doctor for something they can't treat and asked if it is expected to drag my sick child into the doctor's and take time away from his rest in order to get them the piece of paper to which he replied "It's policy" with no regard to the well being of the child and only his numbers. I have received a call while my child was in their care asking if he was ok and why he wasn't at school. If they don't know that my 5 YEAR OLD was there, that shows me how well they pay attention to the children.