Ilm Academy

We have been really happy with Bunker Hill. Our boys have loved their teachers, and we love the new principal. She's very approachable and has gotten to know families very quickly. The building is new, and we're getting a lab elective next year for the kids. The sports facilities and the field are great.Parents at the school are incredibly involved and do a lot of things that make the experience special for the children, like putting on an International Day, Spring Fling, the "Good Behavior" reward shop, and helping with the grade level programs, etc. It's a very nice school with a lot of fun "extras".

We wanted to provide a review for any new family ( not from Houston/ outside Memorial) considering this school for their children, specially for people of colour, or hailing from a different country. Our review is personal to our experience at the school and we appreciate may provide a different viewpoint than held by the majority of white families. We joined the school last year arriving as expats from another English speaking country, our child is brown of Asian heritage, was in third grade and was sadly bullied at the school. We raised a complaint but were told that meanness did not equate to bullying and the school assistant principal offered our son counseling at the school. We then learnt from other families of instances of bullying, specially from those of color, different religion. Some were too afraid to raise this publicly, but spoke of it in private. Many had no option to leave the school. We also had comments which we feel were racist made by a class teacher regarding black students our child was seen playing with being a “bad influence”on our child. This was a tipping point for us. We did not get invited to birthday parties, many families at the neighborhood pool would treat us as “invisible” and look past us. We were told by the school this was “normal”. My son was also bullied to give a gift to two boys “from a respectable” doctor family, who refused to invite him to their birthday thereafter. My younger daughter made only one friend, was questioned about her hair colour, was told to go away from a group of girls playing together and her only friend would never come over for play dates to our home. The school is very focused on testing results and lessons are raced through ending in a test. The GT classes are great but at Bendwood and many children we hear want to drop out of the GT program because of bullying/ rough playing at recess there. The school does little to educate its children to be inclusive, open minded or sympathetic. Foul language and hitting, video gaming, showing off about branded shoes seems to be the ethos here. We tried hard, knocked many doors and spoke to teachers. A few families in the neighborhood cared ( mind you also not native to Memorial) and we are thankful for their kindness. After a year we finally left the school for a private school this academic year. We hope this review sheds a light for anyone similarly placed as us, a professional, educated, brown immigrant family.

My little girl has been in this school since kindergarten and was bullied until the beginning of second grade also got dropped off in wrong bus stop at a very dangerous area in the neighborhood this school does not really let parents engage in activities with the kids. My daughter has only had one field trip in the 3 yrs and it was just making slime I don’t feel like they really care for the students .communication is horrible list goes on and on

Holy Spirit Episcopal School has truly been a blessing for my son who started there in 6th grade. The school has really helped my son thrive academically, socially and spiritually. The teachers are very dedicated and most of them have been teaching at this school for a long time. We can tell that they love what they do. The teachers and staff communicate well with parents and students. We feel that this school is the best place for our son who enjoys being a "Saint".

St. Cecilia Catholic School has a great community, but the administration is weak and often inconsistent. There is a clear preference toward families who donate more, which creates a sense of unfairness. The school’s strong reputation feels overrated and mostly driven by its location and relatively low tuition, rather than overall quality. The families and students are the best part of the school, but the administration falls short.