Rudy G Bologna Elementary School

I saw the Great Schools score of 3/10 and didn't want my son to go to Kinder here at first... but it was beginning of COVID and we couldn't get enrolled into our preferred school. So, we went to this school as our official 'home school', and prayed all would go well. Let me tell you, I am VERY IMPRESSED by the personable, encouraging staff, the curriculum, and even how they handled a budding bully experience in the 1st grade. My son is in a regular classroom, however is on an IEP. The special ed department takes the time to really get to know him and work with him as an individual. I have been nothing but impressed and thankful for the culture here, his main classroom teachers, the Dean of Students, and still getting to know the new Principal this year (so far so good!). My son has attended K-2nd grade here and I cannot recommend this school enough!

SPECIAL EDUCATION: This school claims to be helpful, open and accepting of those with learning disabilities/IEP. It. Is. Not. We had constant struggles the entire year with the team continually talking very negatively (mind you in front of my child) during the meetings. They did not report very many good things until asked which was very frustrating. Our child would get very discouraged during the meetings. Definitely think twice if your student is even slightly struggling in any area as they will not receive the help you hope for. SAFETY:We always knew our student was very safe while at school due to the safety precautions they had in place which was comforting as there were school shootings around the country during this school year. FAMILY ENGAGEMENT:IF and WHEN they notified of events we loved attending but a lot of times we were not notified of anything and found out through fellow parents who worked at the school who would ask if we were going to activity x, y or z. We even sat down with the principal at the start of the year and expressed our sadness of missing an event right off the bat because of lack of communication. There is a lot of that. TEACHING: Our student was not a fan of the teacher. Our student complained regularly that she was kind of mean and has come home with a lot of negative self talk and when asked where he heard it from the response was that the teacher would say those things. Absolutely broke my heart. LEARNING:Also the sheer amount of homework even for the littlest grades is absolutely horrendous. My student should not be expected to come home from a school day and proceed to do 45+ minutes of homework when they should be able to just play and be a kid.

We have been part of the Shumway community for 5 years now and I can’t imagine sending my children anywhere else. Any issues I have had have been dealt with in professional and timely manners. My children feel safe at school and enjoy going. I am pleased with what they are learning both academically and socially.

New Vista is an excellent school. They do a great job customizing each individual kid's course work based on their development. They run test on kids two rounds a year. I said two rounds because if kids top at their scores, they will be tested again at a higher level until their scores indicate they are challenged enough. Kids growing up here will not feel bored, and they do not view tests as something scary or overly stressful. They form a habit of challenging themselves and improving themselves. They are not encouraged to compare to others but to compare to themselves. I love the teachers in NV as you can see how much they care about each kid and how well they know each individual kid and even parents! The director would spend an hour to talk with each individual parent about their kids' progress. Very impressed by her awesome dedication.