Owen Brown

We are a military family on a 2-3yr PCS cycle. This school is fantastic!!!!! The teachers, staff, admin and parents are great. My middle and youngest children attended and were supported with IEPs and 504s. They worked with us before school and during to be sure the kids felt ready and comfortable. They worked with me as a team to teach the kids how to advocate for themselves. They were knowledgeable and had great suggestions and ideas to help with adjustments. I am so thankful that we were able to spend the time here that we did!!! I hope they receive a Blue Star rating for being military friendly.

Principals, teachers, support staff here lack the understanding of developmental stages and the ability to work with students that require them. They are in need of educational support to understand that children with behavioral and learning needs are not managed the way they manage their own personal family issues and will never meet the standards or expectations of a caring community or village. They are not equipped to provide a safe learning environment for children and need to be vetted on their safety protocols and implementation of educational support for children with 504s and IEPs.

My son is in 5th and my daughter is in K. We have lived in this neighborhood for 16 years. When we moved 6 years ago we deliberately looked to stay in the Stevens Forest neighborhood. This is a gem of a school. Every student, except 1 small bus load, are walkers which means every friend is walking distance away. There are only 2-3 classes of 15-22 students at each grade level so every student knows each other and every teacher knows every child. Also, teachers who come to Stevens Forest stay at Stevens Forest. Happy teachers create such a positive, happy learning environment. There are tons of resources and supports for all learners. And because of its location I never worry about sudden growth and overcrowding. This is a true community elementary school and I recommend it to everyone when they are looking to move to Columbia.