Trish Ct
Danville, CA 94506

My kids have loved Sycamore over the years. There were a few bumps in the road but Sycamore has a newer principal who is remarkable and takes every student into consideration. She is open, fair and communicative with the families. The teachers and staff deeply care about each child's academic growth and development.

As a parent, I was disappointed by how concerns were handled at this school. When parents bring forward problems involving students, the response from administration often seems to focus on suggesting counseling for the child rather than fully investigating the underlying issue or holding students accountable for their behavior. Good kids are punished for slight things while kids who cause consistent problems are never held accountable for their actions. One of my other concerns is the school's handling of racist behavior toward Asian students. In our experience, reports of racist comments were not met with the level of urgency, investigation, or communication that I would expect from a school that values diversity and inclusion. Parents deserve clear information about what occurred, what steps were taken, and how the school plans to prevent similar incidents in the future.Middle school can be challenging, but students should feel safe, respected, and supported regardless of their race or background. I hope the administration takes a more proactive approach to addressing discrimination, communicating with families, and ensuring that all students are treated with dignity and respect.

SRV is entirely sports-focused. Parents & teachers are heavily involved in the sports programmes, and school spirit is centered around men’s football/basketball. Academics are consistently declining— fewer AP courses each year, unmotivated teachers, and a general attitude among students that academics are less important than sports. The (few) students that are academically ambitious always have private tutors and paid college advisors because the support at SRV is nonexistent. The culture is of course all about sports, as most students at SRV have lived in Danville forever and grew up dreaming of playing for SRV. There’s lots of school spirit but little involvement in non-sports activities (which are also underfunded). Majority of students are white, wealthy, and privileged, which shows up in the general attitude held at SRV.