Columbia Academy

We are a military family on a 2-3yr PCS cycle. This school is fantastic!!!!! The teachers, staff, admin and parents are great. My middle and youngest children attended and were supported with IEPs and 504s. They worked with us before school and during to be sure the kids felt ready and comfortable. They worked with me as a team to teach the kids how to advocate for themselves. They were knowledgeable and had great suggestions and ideas to help with adjustments. I am so thankful that we were able to spend the time here that we did!!! I hope they receive a Blue Star rating for being military friendly.

Principals, teachers, support staff here lack the understanding of developmental stages and the ability to work with students that require them. They are in need of educational support to understand that children with behavioral and learning needs are not managed the way they manage their own personal family issues and will never meet the standards or expectations of a caring community or village. They are not equipped to provide a safe learning environment for children and need to be vetted on their safety protocols and implementation of educational support for children with 504s and IEPs.

I have had two children who have gone through their fair share of challenges this year. Having Mrs. Katie Carter as the principal has been extremely amazing for our family and our community. She is the best principal I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and engaging with. She is responsive and takes action every time and makes our community a better place. Safety and professionalism is her priority and you can tell she cares for the students, her staff and parents. SFES kindergarten and 1st grade teachers are all also amazing and caring. Our children are fortunate to have had them this school year.

General flow of day to day for your child: There are plenty of well kept resources and learning that you can visually tell is academically benefitting the children. There is a big emphasis on the children learning independently first before staff support and intervention. I love this part, especially since it helps the children learn more independence at a young age. However, The staff are literally taught not to help the children at all, even if you see them struggling, until they verbally have to ask for the help themselves …..very strange “rituals” especially dealing with children. Children shouldn’t have to feel the excessive need to struggle, just to receive basic help. It’s ok if they try something, can’t do it, and an employee then steps in to help and assist to completion. Not contributing intentionally, just increases the chances of a child having more unsettling reactions based out of disappointment, anxiety, fear, etc. This would be ok, if these were elementary school kids, but pushing these excessive standards and rituals on the young Pre-K to K kids is concerning honestly and just flat out too strict. Culture/atmosphere: SELECTIVE employees are generally bright, kind, and nurturing. Parents are given nothing but respect, though they could be catered to as well, in terms of more updates on their child’s academic learning, physical safety, and socioemotional development and safety. Parents like to feel included and not left in the dark on what is going on with their child in school. The main issue this is all pointing to is the directors and how they choose to run and conduct this business. They view it as a business to make profits off of parents. Your kid will definitely learn a lot here, but honestly for better management, practice, and emotional security, you can find somewhere else that knows how to treats their students and employees better.Because if they’re not treating the employees well, that affects the kids, and the kids affect the parents. So we’re all in troubled waters here, if management doesn’t improve and isnt more culturally progressive with each other and the children.