West Point Elementary School

I have only had one teacher communicate with me regularly. I had gone through the volunteer training and even paid for my fingerprint clearance card in order to volunteer. I was never allowed the opportunity to volunteer in my kindergartners classroom. The teacher already had another mom and didn t need/want additional help. Communication is terrible. Emails and phone messages go unanswered all the time. Some weeks there is homework, some weeks not. When I finally received a note home, it was a request for $ for the teacher appreciation gift. Only one teacher was excited and wanted my help. She answered every email and phone call by the end of the day. She happens to be a teacher who is leaving. I did discover that there were instances when children were involved in strange/ difficult situations and the parents of all children involved in the situations were not made aware This is wrong and needs to be changed Bullying seems to be taking place on a regular basis The admin does respond but are slow. The attitude is that this is just the way it is This school lacks the support and structure. If that changed I think it could have a positive school environment.
--Submitted by a parent

So my daughter turns 5 on Sept. 1st. I totally understand that there is a cutoff date to start kinder. We had our daughter tested through the Peoria district for early entrance to Kinder. She was excepted, but the down fall was that peoria failed to tell us it would be $175 a month for all day Kinder. So i searched and came across West Point in hopes they would consider our daughter. Had meeting with the pricipal and he agreed that we could enroll her in Peroria first and then withdraw her and enroll her here. We did so and now they wont honnor it. WOW.
--Submitted by a parent

i was a student there from k-7 and it was the worst school i ever been to and kieffer did nothing but sit in his office and send 7graders out the door

I have 5 children at West point and have attended there for 4 years. I have always been very disappointed in this school. The no bullying policy exists only on paper. two of my children got plainly beaten up and the punishments were a loss of recess and a 'talking to". The kids that attend this school are simply mean. Last year my older children told me they did not want their little brother to go to kindergarten at this school because they were afraid he would get picked on. Now his kindergarten year is almost over and he has been through 3 teachers and hates school. i am moving my children at the end of this year. I understand that school is not the same as it was years ago, but this is ridiculous. the only teachers that I like are the new ones because they are still nice to the students. Additionally, all of my children are straight A students. Schoolwork has never been a struggle for them, yet now they simply do not hand anything in. they no longer care because they are treated the same as the kids who are misbehaving and failing. All 4 of my older kids had straight A's. All of them fell and not one teacher noticed.
--Submitted by a parent

This school and the staff are completely degrading and bully students. They make up new rules all the time and look for students to screw up in the slightest way to write em up. They spend more time worried about stupid unrelating issues rather than educating kids. I am sorry that I am stuck in this district and I now have to find another school for my other 3 children to attend because I don't want this school to get one penny of my tax dollars.
--Submitted by a parent

This school seems to be geared towards AIMS testing and funding only. Bullying is not allowed yet occurs every day. Please let kids be kids and stop over tasking them with an accumulation of work sheets more geared towards the schools financial potential for rewards rather than a childs success!!!! This school was great in 1999 but has steadily declined since.
--Submitted by a parent

I love Mr. Kieffer the principal and my daughters Kindergarten teacher was the best. The downfall is that the neighborhood has really changed. It seems like many of the families are not involved in their students lives. You will have to fight what I call the negative influence of some of the other students. Overall, the school has a nice feel to it and my daughter learned a lot her first year of school.
--Submitted by a parent

If you have a child with any sort of special need stay away from West Point and the Dysart school district as a whole. The teachers are good but bound by high student ratios (31 in my sons class) and district rules that seem to only factor in money. They do not seem to be the least bit concerned for my son and continually push me off, we have had three IEP meetings thus far and the accomodations are ridiculously easy. Really, unless your child is the normal student who can basically teach him/herself I would keep him/her out of this school!
--Submitted by a parent

West Point is the best school that I have ever been to. The teachers and adminstration all work together to meet my child's needs. The school has a reading interventionist for students who are struggling in reading as well as an Instructional Coach who helps teachers stay on target to make instruction relevent and rigorous. All of these people add up to a fanastic school.
--Submitted by a parent

This School has some Outstanding teachers, but the Resource Programs and the way they are handled is a different matter. The whole Resource Team is like a revolving door at this school and makes it very difficult for communication and educational needs to be meet of the children.
--Submitted by a parent