Presidio High School

I am a parent of a high school student at Presidio. At first, I was very afraid of sending my kid to a charter because she has had so much trouble since middle school. However, I can honestly say that Presidio has been wonderful. They have GREAT high school teachers, especially their science teacher (I can't post his name, but you can't miss him!) who not only knows so much about science but also really cares about his students. He has changed my kid's life. She hated science and now she wants to be a Biologist or go to medical school. I can't wait to see what she accomplishes in her life. I will not lie to you though. The curriculum is tough, but it will truly prepare your child for college. And they keep tabs on the kids - no one is left behind. Also, they do treat each student like family. The Facebok page always has calls for help for students that are in need. Not only that, the school sent almost all of the high schoolers to SeaCamp in San Diego this year, which my student and her friends really enjoyed (once again, thank you Doctor Science Teacher). I cannot say enough about this school! It truly is one of the best kept secrets in Tucson. Thank you, Presidio!
—Submitted by a parent

This scool is fantastic. My daughter is getting ready ti wrap up her 3rd year she will start 9th Grade next year. She started at Presidio right out of Elementary School. She generally dislikes school and yet here she brings home all A's and B's. The after school and Saturday Acedemic Lab is wonderful if the need to catch up or need extra help with any work. The extracirricular activities such as dance, tae kwon do, and art are perfect for her as she does not need the distraction of 50 different sctivities to choose from. The small class size is a definite plus. In her 3 years there her class has never exceeded 16 kids. I ofter hear from the teachers if my child beging to fall behing or is missing assignments. The cirriculum is strict, but that is exactly what my child needs. I would be afraid of too many distractions if my child were to attend a regular public school. I would recommend this school to any person.
—Submitted by a parent

My daughter started kindergarten this fall and is loving Ms. Jessica's class! I'm very happy with the level of contact I have with her teacher. My daughter brings home a folder with things from school everyday. I have had to email Ms. Jessica on a couple of things and she responds back right away. It's been great! We participated in a school event where we helped build their garden classroom. Even my 20 month old got in on the fun. My daughter beamed with pride at open house, taking me to each of her classrooms (music, art, etc.). Presidio School is even on facebook so I get various updates and get to see pictures of various activities. It's so fun! We love Presidio School!
—Submitted by a parent

Don't let the smiling, office staff fool you! They would all be great used car salespersons. I thought the same as others, upon touring the school. I was impressed by the "specials" classes (music, art, etc.), but once my child was an actual student, things were not as promised. (The communication between the school and parents is sporadic even though each child has a take-home folder for that purpose). At the beginning of school, the sign language class was cancelled, without notice, with the excuse that the teacher could not continue. No replacement teacher; instead, they added a completely different course. Although they say that parent involvement is encouraged, they don't allow the parents to get involved... they put them off. The school greatly lacks consistency and the "authority" figures are rarely available. When you do get an appointment with them, nothing gets resolved. If you make waves, your child suffers the consequences! Another feature was the "safe, secure" environment--what a joke! People come and go through the side gates everyday. No one is monitoring, and anyone could enter the premises. NOT safe! Do your child a favor, say "no" to Presidio!
—Submitted by a parent

They cherry pick the students they want. If your child does not "perform" to their standards they do what they can to "convince" you to leave. Make up rules as they go along, and don't follow state procedures even though as a charter school they too receive state funds. Disappointed after 3 years. They discourage parent involvement, volunteer help in the classroom is unheard of to them. What are they hiding?
—Submitted by a parent

It is unfortunate that libel postings cannot be screened for negative, untrue content. The writer of a previous post is obviously a former, disgruntled employee who has written extensive, negative remarks in order to damage the reputation of a school that is doing an excellent job of educating the students. My recommendation is for all parents to visit the school and make your own judgements. The school encourages campus visits and you will be able to speak with faculty, staff, and students. I am confident that you will see for yourself what an excellent school this is and the opportunities for your child(ren) to succeed are limitless.

I am extremely pleased with Presidio, and it seems to keep getting better!! I have a child who is currently in the 5th grade and who is receiving a private school education for free. I love the small class sizes, K-12 campus, and very friendly warm environment I experience every time I walk on campus. The school now has a system through their website where I can see my daughter's grades, attendance, and can easily email her teachers if I have any questions. The school now has a parent's association that has been working hard and recently put on a very impressive middle school Valentine's Dance. From reading in the monthly school newsletter I can keep in tune with all the happenings on campus. I recently learned the school is working on adding a garden! Again, the school seems to be improving in my opinion. The faculty and staff genuinely care about each student and work on a tight budget to offer the best learning environment possible.
—Submitted by a parent

PRESIDIO SETTING STANDARDS FOR LEARNING IN TUCSON I have been a guest teacher (formerly referred to as substitute) at Presidio for the last 3 days filling in for grades 8-12. I have substituted in TUSD,SUSD and over 20 Charter Middle and High Schools locally. This is an exceptional learning enviornment. Students are on task, engaged in serious discussion about their studies and envirornment.. Teachers stay after for study hall (remember those?), not ISS.. Teachers teach; not police. Students were respectful, courteous and came into the class room and went right to work! I thought I was on another planet Students use lunch time for great active outdoor activities. Even lunches offer healthy choices. These students and the enviornment in which the administation and teaching staff has created offer a platform from which to springboard students into higher learning. Students read, check out books to bring home, use the computer for something other than FaceBook and are curious about what's happening on a global level. You never get a second chance to make a first impressionm and Presido got it right on their first try. , . These kids are 21s tcentury students.

This school needs help. There is a huge turn over rate for teachers. The reason being that the good teachers refuse to work there. The people in charge of the school have no grasp on what the children really need and they don't care to listen to anyhting that the parents have to say about fixing it. One of my childs teachers actually told her that it was not their responsibility to help them with extra curricular acidemic activities. This is the response that my child got when they asked a teacher for help learning something. True, it is not the teachers job, but it seems to me that this was the equivalent to a house keeper that "doesn't do windows".
—Submitted by a parent

Awful. Faculty lack the ability to each diverse learning styles with innovative techniques, no leadership from administration, resources are limited, school-wide and teacher-parent communication is terrible. High rate of bullying behavior, limited supervision and poor behavior management techniques. Students are allowed to stay on campus without supervision during which time terrible things have happened. No system for reporting issues and issues do not get addressed. Parking is terrible and there are no rules for drop off/pick up time so there are near accidents daily and kids running through the parking lot while cars are moving putting everyone at risk! There isn't a nurse or school counselor or even any type of support staff such as monitors. Please keep your kids safe and choose another school.
—Submitted by a parent

My son has been attending Presidio for two years. There has been such a dramatic improvement in him since he left public school. His first grade class had 13 students and his second grade class has 16! Compare that to most public schools that are faced with over 30 children per classroom. The teachers have been amazing, very positive and willing to work with him. The office staff is warm and caring. I appreciate all that the Presidio staff does to help my son succeed
—Submitted by a parent

Our daughter has been attending Presidio school for 4 years now, since kinder'. The entire staff (administration, office and individual teachers) know our entire family personally. Presidio's programs emphasize education , creativity, and character . The parents and teachers are also very involved in promoting extra -curricular activities and it is always fun to see the involvement of the students to support their causes with booster juice, bake sales, and special events. Our child has increased her confidence and math skills as well as reading and science comprehension, interest and curiosity. We truly love Presidio School!
—Submitted by a parent

My kids have been going to Presidio for four years now. I love the office managers! I honestly don't know who the principal and vice principal are or any of the upper administration. I think i know of one who is very sweet to my children and the other who seems to not like children?? They do seem to have a high teacher turn over. I do like the small class rooms. I do not like that they are unwilling to fill out forms to help ADD or ADHD children. I wish they had a part time nurse. I can see what others mean about rude staff, but it is not all of them. Again i cant say enough about the front desk. Love them all. They are all so helpful.
—Submitted by a parent

My children appear to be doing well in this school. I like the smaller class sizes. I also like the no homework and the kids being responsible for themselves by doing it in academic lab after school. I would like them to be learning languages such as Spanish but they could not find a competent teacher whom they could keep at the school. I wonder about the administration and teacher collaboration as they seem to lose a lot of good teachers over the past several years. I also think the school needs to invest in a real counselor with a masters degree and a school nurse even if part time. They also need training with children who have special needs such as ADD, ADHD or psychiatric issues.
—Submitted by a parent

Great school! My children are doing so much better in this school than they have in the previous charter school they attended. Teachers are friendly and willing to work with parents if needed. Great job Presidio! Keep up the good work!!
—Submitted by a parent

Most teachers at Presidio School are very good, and the student base may well be above average. But the administration is not teacher friendly; it can be unprofessional, imperious, dictatorial, vindictive, punitive, petty, and not well educated in the field of education. It does not allow the teachers to excel as most are capable of doing, and the turnover rate is far too high, which ultimately is detrimental to the students. Virtually no student, parent, or even teacher input is allowed into decisions made. Student and teacher creativity and flexibility are routinely stifled. There is a vice-principal, but no principal???? It is not multi-culturally oriented, and is not special education friendly. Blue Ribbon School (What in the world is that?) which is an amusing public relations ploy, which is meaningless. Administration is wrought with arrant nepotism and cronyism.
—Submitted by a teacher

I have been very pleased as a Presidio parent for the last five years. I have three children attending Presidio, one of them just graduated Presidio High School. I cannot start mentioning all the things that I am grateful for. The staff are like a big family, and all he helps and programs that are offered for the benefit of the students to prepare them for life after high school, is wonderful. My other two kids are very happy and I know they are learning at their level and even more. The music program is awesome, encouraging students to perform which helps them greatly with self confidence and to discover talents that they might not even know they had! There are so many things to mention, but in overall... I am a very happy Presidio parent and proud to be part of the Presidio Family!
—Submitted by a parent

I couldn't wait to get my kids out of this school! I didn't want to pull them out during the school year so we were stuck there a whole year. It did them more harm than good! They are in public school now and are doing well - still trying to get caught up from the year at Presidio. The computerized reading program that they brag about did not help either of my kids with reading. You learn to read by actually READING! They need to focus more on the basics and less on the Spanish and Tae Kwon Do, etc. The administration is not very cooperative. I think the 'no homework' policy is a joke - kids need that extra practice at home. Also, the 'self paced' curriculum is really non existent. Everyone is expected to be at the same level.
—Submitted by a parent

Stay away from this place. We took our children away from this school because of the lousy administration, lousy teaching, lousy self-paced, and lousy overall quality of an education. Our children now attend a different charter school and I know their education level will be much better than at this place. By the way, it means nothing to be a blue ribbon school. This is not an award, but a bunch of forms filled out that exaggerates the school.
—Submitted by a parent

This is a horrible school. I don't know how one parent says their child is learning spanish in Kindergarden, because they don't offer it anymore. The teachers have no idea how to keep the childern focused. My child gets into trouble for finishing work early and then not sitting quitely until everyone else is done. I can't get the teacher to give them something else to do! There was a child that looked about 10 in the spelling bee this year and couldn't spell 'ill'. I'm suprprised parents are rating this school so high. Everyone I've sponken with is looking for new schools.
—Submitted by a parent