Richardson Heights Elementary School

I attended this elementary school from Kindergarten through 4th grade. I am now in college, and to this day tell people about how thankful I am to have gone to Heights Elementary. This school has a wide range of diversity, that I didn't even realize was unordinary until I moved schools. Living my day to day life with people who were not of the same race, religion, economic status, or family dynamic as me has formed so much of who I am as a person. From my time at this school it is what lead me to study Social Work and pursue a career in education. Overall it has made me value differences among people. Which now, from leaving Richardson for college, I see that many people lack compassion, understanding, or even tolerance of people who differ from themselves. So I would highly recommend this school, because any standard elementary school will educate your child with state mandated information, but from attending this school they will inherit life skills that many adults are still failing to grasp.

My son has made huge improvements since switching to Heights.

You may notice a lot of recent 5-star reviews for this school when it rates at only a 6. There are some facts that aren't mentioned in these reviews that must be discussed so parents can be better informed before they send their child to Heights. First off, Heights is a Title 1 school, meaning they bus in and cater somewhat to low-income students that don't live in the immediate neighborhood. These kids deserve a chance as much as any other but know that if your home feeds into Heights, they will be with kids whose families are not invested in the local community. And due to the fact that many are low-income, it is much harder for those parents to be involved with the school because they are often working multiple jobs. PTA is weak currently and in desperate need of more active involvement. During my daughters 2nd grade open-house, a total of 6 parents attended to see what their children had been doing, in a class of 22. I will say the teachers and administrators are amazing and work selflessly to do the best job they can given the circumstances. They are attentive and understanding and bend over backwards to help the students. If only more parents were involved!

This is more than a school, it is a family....I love the diversity - I love that my daughter goes to a school that reflects the changing demographics of the country she lives in - my older daughter graduated from Heights and goes to the local high school where she is in the top 1% - our Heights teachers and staff consistently rise to the challenge of teaching students who speak English as a second language and I would encourage anyone with any lingering racist tendencies to take a look at the quality of the bilingual classes' work and to consider the benefits of sending their child to a school that is representative of what their middle school, high school and adult lives will look like.