McMeen Elementary School

They have so many bullies up there and do nothing about it. Aren’t you supposed to go to school to get an education not be bullied but again Karma sucks.

In our experience, the curriculum and overall rigor have not met expectations, and there is a lack of standards and oversight from the administration to ensure a strong academic foundation. While the student-teacher ratio looks appealing, it doesnt translate into a richer learning environment. Another issue that’s difficult to ignore is the level of turnover among lower elementary teachers. My child has 5 lead teachers in the 2.5 years she has been in lower elementary at MSD. We’ve also noticed a broader pattern of families choosing to leave in lower el, sometimes in the middle of the year. In our child’s current class, only about half of the students are expected to return next year, which clearly shows low satisfaction among families. Ultimately, we’ve made the decision to enroll our children elsewhere next year. I share all of this in the hope that the school’s leadership and Board take a close, thoughtful look at these trends and consider meaningful improvements, including holding current lower elementary administrators accountable for their shortcomings.

We have three kids at Graland and could not be happier. What sets this school apart is how genuinely the teachers know each child — not just their academics, but their personalities, their quirks, and what lights them up. The individualized attention here is real, not just a talking point.Graland understands that raising a great kid means so much more than reading and math. Yes, the academics are strong — but the school invests equally in the whole child. Social-emotional learning is woven into daily life, and our kids have grown in empathy, resilience, and self-confidence in ways that no test score could capture.Graland manages to feel like a close-knit community even as it delivers a genuinely rigorous education. The teachers are the heart of it all — passionate, invested, and remarkable. We feel lucky every day.

The school and its entire staff from the principal to the maintenance staff are amazing. The principal welcomes everyone personally. I feel like they make an effort to know the child in order to help them thrive. They dont just make you feel like they care, they actually do.