St Francis Xavier School

amazing my kids have learned so much and are always exited to go.

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.

I’m puzzled by the rating Great Schools has given this school, as it is so far removed from the reality and the rising state report card grades. My children have attended Avondale since the wonderful First Class Pre-K program. The teachers, administrators, and community partners are all phenomenal. The beautiful building, teaching farm and tennis courts on site, slate of after-school clubs, and active parent community all make it a special place.

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.

Awful place for children, especially queer children. Performative ally ship for financial gain. No effective leadership or governance system. My child was locked out of the classroom with no repercussions against his teacher who refused to open the door. Cliquish behavior among the teachers which trickles down to students. Parents are aware and afraid to speak up due to possible maltreatment to their children. With tuition and fundraising, we spent close to $60,000 over 3 years. Our youngest was locked out of the classroom. When we reported this, we faced ad hominem attacks against our family. Our concerns over my child’s treatment were minimized. We then realized that it was easier for AWS admin and teachers to accuse our family of things that did not occur, rather than to reprimand an employee for negligent, unethical behavior that did occur.Even though we were told by admin and head of COT my children could stay until the end of the school year, we received a termination letter by admin at pick up two days later. I delivered two whole children to this school. Our children's school year was completely upended through no fault of their own. AWS has left a financial burden on our family. We requested a refund from the board to cover services my children need and were denied. We are currently paying $1600/monthly to correct the damage done to my children by AWS. This includes therapy for both children and academic support for my youngest. They had more academic skills when leaving Kindergarten than they did in February 2024. They are in second grade. The school had us believe that school activities should not be in the home in the younger years. I now believe this is a facade to cover up for the fact that students in my youngest’s class were taught no academics, and the lack of oversight of teachers in general.Children should be in a safe place and thrive and not be intentionally harmed by adults who have so little integrity, ethics, emotional maturity, and not harmed by those who use performative allyship for financial gain.

I truly enjoyed this school. It teaches structure and great educational values. I am now on the path to become a doctor and it all started at this great institution from preK- 5th grade. I'm not sure how it is now, but it was great in the past.