Avondale Elementary School

This may be the best elementary school in the country. The teachers and staff are amazing, the pupils are amazing children, and the community spirit is like none I’ve ever seen. Living in Crestline is very expensive but it is worthwhile for my three children to enjoy being at Crestline.

COvID-19 has really been hard. The teachers try but the inequalities are very clear.

My experience at Cornerstone Schools of Alabama was deeply disappointing. Administration consistently brushed off serious concerns raised by both students and teachers. The principal openly played favorites, and I witnessed a teacher being brought to tears simply for standing up for students. Several teachers who chose to leave stated plainly that the school does not treat students like human beings.Academically, the curriculum is poorly structured. Students who leave Cornerstone and transition to public schools are often severely behind. Student voices are routinely shut down, with the exception of varsity teams, who are allowed to speak without consequence—though even then, little action is taken.Despite presenting itself as a Christian institution, the environment felt judgmental, sexist, and at times prejudiced. The values being practiced did not align with the values being preached.The only consistently positive aspect of the school is safety. Their protocols for intruders and high-stress situations are well planned and taken seriously. Unfortunately, strong safety measures cannot make up for systemic issues in leadership, academics, and student treatment.

I attended Alabama Waldorf School from nursery through the 6th grade, and I can honestly attest that Waldorf was incredibly formative in my life. The atmosphere was warm and caring, and everyone knew one another, so I felt a sense of personal responsibility to everyone around me. I was always encouraged to focus on interpersonal relationships, kindness, honesty, and especially creativity, which became really important in my life - I started writing, pursued creative writing in high school and later in college at Yale, and am now getting an MFA in creative writing. I owe much of this passion for artistic creation to my upbringing at Waldorf. I will also add that I especially appreciate the way Waldorf discouraged using technology, playing video games, social media and so on. Growing up without technology gave me a lot more room to develop personally and creatively than kids at other schools were afforded, and I think that's even more important nowadays. I can't recommend Waldorf enough!!

I have had nothing but great experiences with St Francis Xavier Catholic school! I was new to the area when I first came across this school and since being a part of the school community my family and I have felt so included and welcomed! My family and I are also members of the parish but have met many families that are not and have chosen to send their kids to school here as they have also experienced the community here and the invest the entire staff puts into each child and their education! The teachers here work hard with each student to challenge them in their academics while also building up the whole person. I was met with honesty and clarity when I brought forth an issue I was seeing with my child, meeting with both the principal and teacher. I felt very supported and heard leaving that meeting, walking away with the comfort that the staff wanted what was best for my child and for my family and that they were willing to work with us to do that. I can not recommend this school enough!

Advent is a amazing school. They make learning fun. Some teachers can be mean to the kids and yell a lot but that helps them to learn.