Hawthorne

As school tours and enrollment season rolls around, I just wanted to take the time to post a review for International Community School (ICS) in OUSD. Last year, around this time, I was researching Spanish dual immersion schools with no idea which to pick. After attending all of the school tours for each of them in the district, I was so enamored with ICS. I am SO glad that our son got into ICS! The principal, Ms. Raquel, is a gift. She is the most accessible principal I've ever come across, having been a teacher at the school, a parent to a former student, and now principal. She hosts monthly meetings with parents to hear their concerns and acts on them immediately. The parent community is unmatched; I've never felt so welcome anywhere. There are numerous opportunities to meet other families, and people often come over to introduce themselves. There are many opportunities to celebrate the various cultures at the school, and English speaking families are welcomed into the community too. Kids all seem to know each other, and they are genuinely happy to see each other every day. My son went from speaking very little Spanish to willingly speaking it at home with his dad, who is fluent. His TK teacher, Ms. Micaela, is absolutely phenomenal, as are the paras Ms. Judith and Ms. Garcia. I couldn't have dreamt of a better experience for our son and family.

Achieve has a beautiful new campus and a very dedicated team of teachers. The principal is fantastic and works incredibly hard to ensure that students are learning. Teachers use high quality curriculum and monitor student growth closely.