Philander Lee Elementary School

The teachers and volunteers at the school routinely disregard my children's request to not be touched. Unwanted hugs are forced on them without their consent. In addition, they have no structure for students who are talented/gifted, instead relying on already-overworked teachers to somehow create lesson plans for not only their regular class load, but for these students as well. Here is just a small sample of the assorted issues we've encountered at this school :- Child 1 (girl) punched in the stomach by another student (boy) while at Outdoor School. Despite my advice to send the offending student home, he was allowed to stay, causing my daughter to have to spend the next two days in close proximity to her attacker.- Child 2 (girl) kicked and punched by other students (boys). I advised her to give them one warning if they did it again, and if they persisted, to kick them in the shin as hard as she can. When she followed through on this, she was sent home while the ones who attacked her had no repercussions.- Child 3 (boy) is a TAG student. I was told by his 3rd grade teacher in a conference that there was no structure in place for him to be challenged/taught as gifted students should. This child was also sent to the office for falling asleep in class due to boredom.The Principal is a complete waste, concerned more about frivolities like holiday parties and fundraising then with actual advocacy for the students in her charge. Under her "leadership" the computer lab was discontinued and the equipment sold in order to pay for new playground equipment instead. My children's education could be better implemented by watching random Youtube videos. The only good teacher they had retired at the end of last year.If your child is in any way unique, requiring advanced instruction, or emotional support in any way, they would be better served at nearly any other school in the Canby area.

The principal cares about the students and is always available to help and come a long side the teachers and parents to help. The teachers we’ve had so far are great with the kids and have been so flexible and hard working through distance learning and all that the last few years have brought! So thankful for all the staff at this school and that my kids get to attend here.

This school offers Spanish dual immersion for the Canby community. Students who complete the kinder - 6th grade program and then take Spanish in middle and HS will graduate HS with a bilingual honor. The 2024 HS graduating class were the first to complete the program to fruition! The staff is friendly, engaging and encouraging and the staff often host after school engagement type functions throughout the year. Overall, my student is thriving and loves learning about other cultures and another language. 10/10 RECOMMEND!