Emerson Elementary School

My kid has been going to Whittier for a few years, and our experience has been very positive. Whittier has great teachers and staff, provides many opportunities for student learning (including after school programs, music lessons, and summer camp), and has many family events. We have had a great experience sending my kid here. We are very happy with their education and what they've learned. My only issues were that MPS Kids no longer offers after school care here, but that is mainly substituted by the after school programs and the community center for older kids. The community center connected to the school is great and offers many great activities for kids in the neighborhood (things like art projects, drones, skateboarding, ice skating, archery, etc.) If you're worried about Whittier having a bad rating, I'd encourage you to visit the school and get to know the staff. We're very happy we selected Whittier, especially being it's out community school and we've enjoyed getting to know the other families that live in our area.

There are some wonderful things about this school and then you see below the surface and wow, what a shame. It is a beautiful place to send your little kids. "The grades" (1-8) are riddled with major problems. Because of the rosy picture that is painted and the beautiful festivals and music, we were blind to the true problems and lack of a solid education our kids were getting. Parents are kept out of the classroom and at arms length, so it isn't clear at first what the kids are missing. I SO wish we had left sooner. We were there for eleven years between our kids.They claim to teach "the science of reading" by tossing around Orton-Gillingham basic training, but they are not teaching reading with any proficiency, and MANY kids are negatively impacted by this. Because reading by some classroom teachers does not start until 2nd grade, it is isn't until 3rd or 4th or even 5th that true reading problems are exposed. This is a SERIOUS disservice to many kids who have gone through this school. It is very very common for kids to need outside tutors for reading. Sometimes this is over 1/3 or 1/2 or a class needing tutoring for reading. Social Emotional wellbeing is one thing that feels centered when touring and learning about the school, and to come to find out it is one of the weakest aspects of the school can be heartbreaking. The approaches taken in middle school often leave lasting pain and inflict unnecessary drama on the students. We came for the beautiful package and as it slowly opened we saw the disfunction that was inside.

The school is NOT supportive of students with mental health challenges. The school does not hold students accountable who bully other students. Students who are bullied must leave while the bullies stay at school. The school's policies are based on industrial-age notions of timeliness rather than the quality of work. School leadership is weak and excessively paid.