Ida B. Wells Elementary

Hattie Cotton had a Great Open House tonight!

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I really love this school! The staff is really great and they truly care about the kids who attend this school! My child is currently enrolled in the pre-k program and I must say that I am very impressed! They go above and beyond to make sure that my child is able to comprehend what is taught in class and works hard to strengthen her weaknesses. I am a parent who likes to keep up with my child's progress daily and the teacher had no problem creating a daily report for me. In doing so, I can help my child at home in the areas she needs help with! Every child has a different way of learning and they cater to each child's needs. Who could ask for more than that!!!

This is our child’s third year at the school. We originally chose it because we had heard such wonderful things about the former principal, but he left before we even started. Since then, we have seen a continued push toward the arts, which we appreciate, but unfortunately it feels like that focus has come at the expense of academics.Over the past few years, test scores have dropped and the school is now a Level 1 school based on its academic performance. It often seems as though the administration is not fully connected to what is happening in the academic classrooms and continues to prioritize the arts without addressing the decline in academic outcomes.Teacher turnover has also been noticeable. This year the school has gone without a gym teacher or a librarian, and several other teachers have left mid-year. The teachers who remain are truly wonderful, dedicated, caring, and hardworking, but from the outside it appears they are not given the support they need to meet the academic needs of every student.We genuinely love the community and value the creativity the arts bring, but the lack of academic leadership has made us seriously consider other opportunities for our child next year. We hope to see stronger direction and a more balanced focus moving forward.