St Monica School

Amazing school and staff that support each individual student. Great community of students and parents that really come together. The test scores have improved A LOT and should be ranked much higher if using current data in recent years. The new playground lets the kids run around freely which is nice. Easily one of the best schools and environment for kids in Philly!

not a very friendly school and there is a lot of kids that need help.

I used to work with contracting services amongst OLOH and the teachers. Students are fine-most staff are truly friendly. Though during my time there, the principal was very rude towards her superiors. She’d have tantrums throughout the day going up and down. Her treatment towards the children was mediocre. She’d yell if kids had to use the bathroom, didn't have books covered, and if they weren’t silent in the lunchroom until they were told to be spoken too. Being a catholic school, OLOH struggles to be innovative and lacks a true administration team. It is ran by one principal and one assistant, who both lack a pleasant nor friendly demeanor. Public schools offer more than the services Catholic schools offer in terms of special education services. The fact that even the staff speak behind the principals back on how atrocious she can be, speaks volumes. OLOH needs a huge revamp in terms of administration and innovation. Out of all the Catholic schools in Philadelphia-I’d never consider for one moment, to have my children walk through those doors.

As a former graduate student of St Thomas Aquinas from years 25-26, This school honestly has a lot of problems, especially when it comes to being professional and teaching math. A lot of the time, things feel really unorganized. Teachers and staff (to be specific, Joanne Gledhill) don’t always explain things clearly, and the rules can change depending on the situation, which gets confusing. It makes it hard to know what’s expected and doesn’t feel very fair.One positive thing about the school is the English teacher (Danielle Godfrey) She explain things clearly, make lessons interesting, and actually take the time to help students understand the material. It feels like she care about how well students are doing and want everyone to succeed, which makes a big difference compared to other classes.Overall, the school doesn’t feel as professional as it should, and the math education really needs improvement. School is supposed to help students learn and succeed, but right now it feels like we’re not getting the support we need.