Florida Virtual Academy At Pasco

If you care about your child’s safety and well-being, stay away from this school!They lost the paperwork that allowed my daughter’s medication to be administered at school, and no one informed me. No one at the school was concerned enough to notify me that she was not receiving her medication.They transferred her to a Spanish class without my consent, even though she did not pass the exam required to take bilingual classes. They waited until she was close to failing the quarter to tell me that they needed my authorization to move her back to the regular class (yet for the first change, no one asked for my consent).So far this month of February, today is the third time that when we go to pick up my daughter, NO ONE knows where she is. It takes them 45–60 minutes to find her, and they do not allow parents to enter the school.They schedule a parent conference at the school when you request one, and when you arrive, they leave you waiting for over an hour until you get tired and leave.I have already started the process of transferring her to another school, but because they are so irresponsible, they have not provided the required documentation to the new school or to me. They always say they will send it by email, and they never do.I would give zero stars if I could, but that’s not an option. The administration at this school is THE WORST. For the sake of your children, do not enroll them here!!!

I grew up going to a private school and had no intentions of ever sending my children to a public school. I will eat my words now. My children all attended Mandarin Oaks for several years, and it is the most wonderful elementary school I’ve ever seen or heard of, and I’ve worked in many. Before we decided on sending our oldest, a friend who had worked there said they try to make it like Disney World. I had no idea what that meant, but I smile to say that I do now and they do a great job at it. At MOE, every opportunity is taken to bring joy and life to every student. There’s music and decorations, festivals, costumes, animals, traditions, gardens, love. The teachers are capable, professional and loving to the children with very few exceptions. Ms. Butterfield is a once in a lifetime principal. She supports her staff but supports her parents too. Every issue I’ve brought to her has been personally heard and addressed promptly with satisfaction. Ms. Mac N Cheese blessed our family in a very important way, she will be a legendary figure in our family stories and is an absolute character and joy as a teacher. She wears fun clothes and earrings every day, has an actual menagerie in her classroom and out in The Garden. Most importantly, she truly sees each child. We cherish Ms. Dubisky and I was so pleased with the level of writing my third grader learned from Ms. Wood. Impressive. But I could go on. Mr. Royal, Ms. Wadsworth, Coach Butler, art teachers, Ms. Cunningham, Ms. Yonge, Ms. Lappen, Ms. Schlupp, ESE team, Ms. Pitts, Ms. Danielle… And then there’s officer Hall. Officer Hall is our school police officer. He deserves a presidential commendation and that’s no exaggeration. He stands outside the school every morning doing his duty and well beyond. He shouts affirmations (“I knew it was going to be a great day when I saw that you were here today.”), greetings (Hey there, Princess/Fighter Pilot), and personalized messages of encouragement (“This is an important day for you. Do your best!”) to EVERY student, parent and younger sibling walking to the building. I saw him recently in a much more serious setting, and he does that well too. I’ve never seen or heard anything like it. He needs a documentary. It’s a great school. It’s a school-there’s day to day and the mundane, but its exceptionalities make it truly great. And recently, it’s shown itself to be much more than just a school. It’s a family and a community to the core. Very, very proud.

If you go to this school you will have 2 experiences based on where you fit in. Its either going to be a 5* or a 1*, we have called the 5* experience “the club”. If you are in the club, you can skip classes, you will be graded on a softer grading scale, teachers will host test/assignment workshops on the weekend and you will be invited to this. If you are not in the club and are late to class by 1 min they will get a tardy, they will hand in an assignment and everyone in the group will get a 90 but my child will get a 70, no help for tests. At the same time my child gets to hear how some of the club kids have only attended 25% of class and are rocking an A. In grade 5, 6, 7, and 8 there are areas where club kids can socialize while class is going on and not be counted tardy. If you are not in the club they will basically run you off, you are not welcome it will be obvious. Don’t try and work with the administration they exist to help club kids be all they can be.

What a pleasant experience it has been working with Baymeadows Christian Academy. We are blessed to be a part of this school!