Haisley Elementary School

We started our son at this school in Y5. He had a FANTASTIC Y5 teacher and a wonderful year, though we had to fight really hard to get an appropriate TA for him because the principal just kept making excuses for the one in place. The principal, Dante Watson, was a disaster. He was evasive, and did not care if IEPs were being followed. He concentrated mainly on trying to vacate our child's IEP of a TA because the school district can't keep them staffed (due to ridiculously low pay) by telling us that our son did not need the support. Fast forward through two mediocre (at best) Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers, we finally landed a FANTASTIC teacher in 2nd grade. To this day, she still checks in to see how our child is doing. During third grade our child was placed with a teacher who clearly had no training with kids who needed IEP support due to ADHD (Faison). It went from bad to worse as she kept trying to shame our son into focusing (corroborated by other students and a parent). She effectively caused our son to be ostracized by many of the other kids in the classroom because she would openly mock and belittle him instead of making sure he had the support he was SUPPOSED to have been getting. We talked with her about this issue on multiple occasions, but it went nowhere. We appealed for help from the administration and that got nowhere because the principal took a mysterious leave of absence a few months into the year. We finally got sick of our son crying every day about going to school because he felt bullied by his own teacher, and pulled him out to put him into a private school. I'm extraordinarily bitter that our hand was forced to resolve the situation instead of being handled by the administration at Haisley. We are not the only family that has pulled our child from this school due to complete lack of support for students with IEPs or 504s. That being said, if your child is neurotypical, they will likely be welcomed here

I've had kids at Haisley for the past four years and both they and I have grown to truly love this school. The teachers are excellent, the leadership is effective, and the community is diverse and yet relatively close-knit. My children are routinely respected and challenged by their wonderful teachers, and have had so much fun participating in all the extra activities offered by Haisley--science fairs, school plays, soccer, enriched math, and more. I feel so lucky that my kids are spending their formative school years at Haisley, and feel they are truly prepared to shine in middle school.

When you get a lunch from the school they sometimes run out of food so they give you half portions for the some price. Also when their is a problem the principle picks a side and only wants/cares about the person's side of the story

2 kids through this school and in my opinion it's the finest in Ann Arbor. Great diversity and teachers are wonderful!

This is my fourth year at Haisley, and both my children attend school there. The level of instruction at this school is exceptional, and under the leadership of the new principal, I have seen the school truly blossom. She is an incredibly positive, energetic presence at the school, and is fully dedicated to the Haisley community. There is also a wide range of cultural and socioeconomic diversity here, which adds immeasurable value to all students' educational experience during their tenure at Haisley. Any concern or question I have had regarding my children has been promptly addressed by teachers (not just this year, but in every grade level we've been through, K-3), and I know my kids are being challenged not just to meet their personal goals, but to surpass them. The staff is engaged with parents and students, and I love how Responsive Classroom is being used to guide the learning environment. This year was a game changer - really glad I decided to stay at Haisley instead of doing school of choice.