Watkins Mill Elementary School

This is our second year at FCES, and we truly love this school. The sense of family and inclusion is wonderful, and the family engagement and PTA do an amazing job bringing the community together. Communication from the school is excellent, which helps parents stay informed and involved. My daughter has loved her teacher, and there are many parent volunteer opportunities that make it easy to be actively involved in your child’s education.

My son has attended Strawberry Knoll from Kindergarten and is now graduating from 5th grade. All of the teachers my son has had have been wonderful and they care. Before the Pandemic and throughout they have always gone above and beyond. The school is diverse, the Principal Mr. Scott is great and gets to know the students individually. They have a lot of events and activities to include the family. I am very happy with the education my son received at Strawberry Knoll. If your child is shy or has challenges, they will find the "Knoll" to be a safe inclusive environment. I can't say enough about Strawberry Knoll.

From the administration and the children at this school. I wouldn’t recommend this school to an enemy. I have witnessed staff speak to children in a demeaning manor, tell students they are going to get them in trouble with their parents and that they are a bad kid. If they do that in front of other adults, can you imagine what they do when alone with your child? Children at this school aren’t held accountable and it’s always an excuse. Child here anre bullies, use physical contact first, very little is done by staff, student get away with murder, student are forced to have restorative conversations even when someone gets physical and both are forced to apologize. Continuing a cycle of violence and abuse with zero consequences and then wonder why the cycle continues. Although I haven’t come across a lot of amazing teachers I will say there are a few. Both of my children have expressed that a lot of the specials teachers are mean (media, music), shout a lot and are not liked. I have heard students at the park across the street say all their teachers do is yell and shout etc. I hear parents asking other kids about being picked on and bullying. That is what this school enables and cultivates. The fish rots from the head and both the principal and asst principal cover for each other, full of excuses and after several interactions are untrustworthy.