W
Meridian, ID 83646

A deeply disappointing experience at Chaparral Elementary SY 2023-2024.I truly regret not withdrawing my son from this school sooner. He previously attended A Step Ahead Preschool, where he thrived—he was excited to go every day and approached learning with enthusiasm and confidence. Unfortunately, that all changed after enrolling at Chaparral.From the start, we noticed a significant decline in his enthusiasm for school. He became withdrawn and less confident when faced with new learning tasks. The most distressing incident, however, was when my wife picked him up from school and discovered he had been left in soiled clothing after an accident. Our son had peed his pants—a first for him, ever—and despite asking his teacher for a change of clothes, he was left in the same state for the rest of the school day. This level of neglect is inexcusable.When we raised the issue with the principal, she acknowledged that the situation was unacceptable and called it a "red flag." We then arranged a meeting with her and the teacher, but the meeting itself only further highlighted the school's lack of professionalism. The teacher arrived late, and we were told we had only 15 minutes to speak. Rather than addressing our concerns, the conversation was steered toward complaints about our child. They completely disregarded the fact that, just the day before, we had to pick him up early after the school nurse informed us he had been injured when another child picked him up and dropped him—resulting in him hitting his head on the floor.The leadership at this school is seriously lacking. The principal does not appear to be a neutral, empathetic, or effective advocate for students or their families. While I want to believe that there are good teachers at Chaparral, the one assigned to our son showed a troubling lack of care and basic responsibility.I hope our experience serves as a cautionary tale for other parents. We want our children to feel safe, supported, and seen—and sadly, Chaparral failed on all counts.

The principal and much of the staff are great, and the school’s approach allows kids to learn in an academic setting without overloading them, meaning they can still enjoy their childhood. They also implement some fun experiences into the school year. I would personally rate it an 8/10 for academics. The coursework has been a bit easy for my kids at times, but that’s just required me talking to their teachers about finding ways to challenge them. Overall, we’re very happy at this school.