Swift Elementary Specialty School

Last year was our first year and the experience was a good one for my daughter's and i

I would rate our experience as a 10/10. Principal Cannela is amazing and demonstrates genuine compassion for the students and the community. I see him outside the school every morning ensuring the safe arrival of students, working with the crossing guards and warmly greeting parents with a smile. He takes the time to greet students by their name. The Kindergarten teachers are excellent and in spite of dwindling education budgets, they have worked extremely hard to raise money for their classrooms by writing grants and community fundraisers to furnish classrooms with laptops, smart boards and other supplies. The recognize that one size doesn't fit all and have tailored their teaching techniques to assist students at an individual level. This school has made dramatic improvements in the last few years - both with technology resources, musical programs, infrastructure, etc. We are well pleased with the work the principal and staff are doing on a daily basis.

I have been a student at Swift for 3 years and counting and this school is very diverse in ways but there is very limited celebration of diversity in the school. Swift didn't even have a black history month in February. I find that to be ironic because there was a celebration of every other culture, It made me feel like I didn't belong and that the black culture doesn't matter. I wouldn't recommend this school unless you want your child to only be exposed to certain cultures. The teachers also pile on lots of classwork which ends in doing homework to 11:30pm. No matter how much classwork we do there is still homework. The bathrooms are very out-dated and for some of the bathroom stalls you literally have to ask someone to hold it shut so it won't fly open while your using the bathroom. Over all there is always lots of drama and arguments between people.

My daughter has been going been going to swift for 2 years now, currently a 5th grader. I feel her teachers she has had amd currently have are wonderful in their uniqueness to make learning fun and interesting. I just wish the school had more afterschool programs and sports. I love the new principal Swift has now. Mr. C is so welcoming and engaging, and this makew me feel good as a parent. I plan on my daughter graduating from here.