Heatherwood Elementary School

My child was bullied by two teachers, in back-to-back years, that left him head-down on his desk, unwilling to engage, and believing he was "stupid," to the level that he spent 18 months intermittently saying that he wanted to kill himself. I spent that time in a useless spiral of attempting to solve the problem, believing that the problem was within our home based on the exchanges I had with the principal and teachers. Finally, distressed, afraid, and out of ideas, I sought counseling support for my child. Two counselors and assessments later, both concluded that my child suffered from trauma induced by cruelty in the HEATHERWOOD ELEMENTARY classrooms by the TEACHERS. There were, in fact, no signs of educational impairments, and his verbal capacity was extraordinarily high. The after-care program located at Heatherwood is a zoo; the children who pour into the after-care environment are frazzled, edgy, and fighthing. Once provider told me that of all the schools she has worked in, Heatherwood kiddos come in from their school day in the worst shape. We moved my son to a different school, and EVERYTHING changed for the better... once he started to understand that to engage in the classroom would not be met with punitive action. I have since relocated my other child (as soon as I could open enroll) and both are socially and academically in healthier environments. Steer clear of Heatherwood's toxic, nasty environment.

I love being part of the Heatherwood community -- where students, parents and teachers are all working together.

The neighborhood feel and community involvement is great. However, the class sizes are too large and communication regarding academic progress and behavior is poor. My child has had a couple wonderful engaging teachers, but has also had disengaged and unorganized teachers.The open floor plan can make concentration difficult for some children. I volunteer in the classroom and find that I am anxious most of the time due to the noise and commotion going on.

Heatherwood has a great neighborhood-school vibe and, rounding-out our second year there now, we have been pleased with the focus on academics. Having said that, we are thrilled that every week our son is experiencing art, music and a healthy amount of outdoor time. As parents, this school checks-off a lot of boxes on our education wish-list. It's not perfect – for example, we could use more foreign language studies – but it's a fantastic public school. We've met great people, our son is thriving and we are grateful that we find ourselves in such an engaged, invigorating community.