Alafia Elementary School

When my daughter started school here principal Kevin Martin was in charge and he was just great. Amber Cronin leaves much to be desired. She seems to put emphasis on metrics that improve her image and not the school as a whole (attendance, testing, Bucs rallying) I love volunteering but have found her to be very disrespectful to parents and the PTA. Recent security threats at the school have me concerned as protocols are inconsistent and change daily. Principal offers no comfort or assurance to parents. Principal Martin always kept us updated and reassured. A major threat made with zero followup to parents. Students walked between classrooms under an active “lock in”. The lights for the alarms malfunctioning during active lock in without notice to parents about how this was going to be addressed. Im very worried that in a real emergency this current principal Cronin lacks the leadership skills to keep the school safe. My fingers are crossed she finds the promotion she is currently looking for and we get someone new. The school as a whole is not bad. Many experienced and caring teachers work here. Too bad several teachers left when Mr. Martin transferred. I don’t blame them considering his personality and professionalism was night and day compared to what we have now.

Enroll your kids to this school if you don’t value the safety of your child. Hands down the worst school when it comes to safety and proper discipline. My son has been threatened to be shot at the bus stop by another student. The school claimed they “followed protocol” by deeming the threat to not be serious enough for action. The kid who made the threat continues to ride the bus because as quoted by the school “they can’t control safety at the bus stops”. My son was then assaulted on the bus by a student who has been identified before for punching other students. Again the school decided to do a “write up” as their disciplinary action and left it at that. No suspension or parent contact. Oh which brings up the point that the school told us they don’t contact parents about punishments. This school is negligent when it comes to holding violent students accountable.

My 4th grader developed severe social anxiety after being bullied and ignored by the principal in this school by a child who regularly bullies others. Her and a group of girls made and shared a RAP DISS track about my daughter mocking her, her family, and her body. If your unlucky enough to be at this school, make sure you send your kid in in tattered cloths ready to fight because bullies will be given 100 chances and this is where your child will learn to fight for their self or isolate.

My experience is that I went because of the stars and comments that this school was excellent and that they really care that the students understand and rise to the next level.First the school has the Esol program but from time to time I asked for it for 1 year since the primary language is Spanish and the help came in January of the 4th grade.Second, my son was teased and the teachers didn't take it into account until he talked to the assistant principal. I believe that bullying is not taken into account.Third, they say that teachers are trained to help children whose language is Spanish. The 4th grade teacher did not help my son at all. They said that he had a condition of non-comprehension. They didn't help him at all, they only care about those who do speak English and get good grades on the state exams.Fourth, I must thank the administration secretary, who is very attentive to teacher Murray, who helped me in 3rd grade and who knew what the language problem was, and to the psychologist, her attention was excellent.My advice is that if your child speaks Spanish, scare your child where they have the Esol program every day so that they really learn and the same thing that happened to my son does not happen to them.I took him out this year because I think he didn't get help from the 4th grade teachers.

We had a very poor experience with this preschool and feel compelled to share in hopes that other parents, especially those with children who have allergies or special needs, can make a more informed decision.Our son has a severe peanut and tree nut allergy, and we provided the school with a doctor-issued emergency protocol to ensure his safety. Despite our efforts, the school showed a troubling lack of coordination and understanding. There was ongoing confusion through multiple phone calls, Zoom meetings, and in-person conversations. It was clear that communication between staff members was disjointed.One of the most upsetting incidents occurred when our son told us he was made to sit alone behind the kitchen during snack time, and when he asked why, a teacher reportedly told him, "because we don't want you to get sick." We had clearly expressed that we did not want him isolated & singled out during meals. This action was both unnecessary and emotionally harmful for a 4-year-old child.When we brought this to the attention of the director, Ms. Pranita, she was completely unaware of the situation. She gave conflicting accounts - first claiming our son declined fruit, then backtracking and saying she wasn't present at the time and would speak to the teachers to clarify. We never received a follow-up, despite being promised one.To make matters worse, when we went to collect our son's belongings and medications, the director and owner walked them out silently without a word of acknowledgment or apology. We found this to be incredibly unprofessional and cold, given the circumstances.And lastly, despite all the above, we discovered that they were teaching our son to write his name incorrectly, because they had it misspelled on all materials.This experience was deeply disappointing.Our main priority has always been our child's safety and well-being, and we expected a basic level of competence and compassion from a preschool - especially when dealing with a serious medical condition. Unfortunately, we did not find that here.