Utah County Academy of Science (Ucas)

I’ve had 4 kids attend Orem Elementary, and it’s truly a hidden gem. This is a school with a strong sense of welcoming and community, many parents actually know one another, and there’s a genuine "village" atmosphere. It’s clear the admin and teachers make a visible, concerted effort to improve both the learning and social-emotional standing of the school, and care about the success of all students. Plus they offer ALL (advanced learning lab) which has been wonderful for my children who tend to need more of a challenge academically. They also have early morning ballroom dance program for the older grades. We have loved our time at the school and the relationships both my kids and I have made.

My children were transfer students and from my personal experience, it wasn't pleasant as a parent or for my children. The principal was very rude to me, refused to help, was very cold and unfeeling-My daughters first grade teacher yelled at the students regularly and even swore at the class. And my son who was in kindergarten was being bullied by older kids on the bus and came home with bleeding scratch marks on his face and when I told the teacher about it, she told me that my son was a liar and that those kids would never do that without cause. So the kids didn't get in trouble, but my son did...was it because he was new? Was it because the teacher was bias because she'd had those students in her class before? Or was it because my kid is hispanic? Who knows. But it was a terrible school, and I transferred them to another school for the following year.

We LOVE Westmore! It has a very diverse population with many cultures and the teachers are incredible. We also love the music program, the science program and the school play!

We recently moved out of state, but while we were in Utah, we had such an incredible experience at Arches. At Arches, all of the teachers and employees have such intentionality and pride in what they are building. They are passionate about teaching and instilling knowledge, skills and good character in our children. The teachers care so much and during parent-teacher conference it is clear they are really paying attention to our childrens' development, and actively trying to help them grow. I also love the focus on character, leadership and behavior development. My young kids learned how to follow instructions, respect other peoples' space, respect authority, work hard, find joy in learning, be responsible for completing assignments, and be organized. Also, all of our kids made massive leaps academically at Arches, which has set them all up very well. The intentionality of Arches cannot be beat. Arches has left a positive mark on each of our children that will benefit them for the rest of their lives. Thank you!