Berkeley Arts Magnet at Whittier School

BAM is wonderful! My husband and I have been so impressed with the school on many different levels. First and foremost, the academics are top-notch, but we have also been impressed with the school's sense of community and the warmth from both teachers and staffers alike. Our sensitive son has really thrived here, and we are excited for our other children to attend the school, as well. By the way, I am also a Latino parent and have been extremely happy with our child's experience in this regard at the school. This year our son did a pretty extensive unit on Day of the Dead, and last year's Cesar Chavez day celebration was wonderful. Most importantly, *all* cultures are celebrated at BAM - we love the school's diversity, and we love that our child is excited to go to school every day.
—Submitted by a parent

Our family has been really happy at this school -- it is an excellent choice for elementary school and has met our high expectations so far. We have found the teachers to be smart, warm, capable of managing a classroom well, and really good at imparting enthusiasm for learning. The principal, Ms. Collins, is strong, very responsive, and highly committed to continual betterment of the school for all kids, and is well-liked by students, parents, and teachers. There are lots of extra arts, music, and P.E. options that many other schools lack, as well as an awesome, active PTA. We looked thoroughly at many private schools and the other public schools in our zone and neighboring districts, and when comparing the curricula, teacher-student ratio, student achievement, quality of teachers, leadership and responsiveness of the principal, satisfaction of current parents, and price tag, this school really shined. Is it perfect? No. There are many areas for improvement -- for instance, the playgrounds could use a lot of greening. But overall, this is a great school with a great faculty, and we have been really pleased.
—Submitted by a parent

I m a Latino parent of a 2nd grader at BAM and I found the school to be less than supportive of my child s needs. I agree with most of the postings here that the school has potential to be a thriving environment for all students. To my disappointment I felt our child was consistently ignored and us the parents belittled . I want to express my frustration , since the PTA does not seem to support my community.. Physically, mentally, or spiritually.. My ethnicity is well grounded in all and the PTA just bombards us with money request but no support for our children.
—Submitted by a parent

I chose this school because of all the high remarks I was told from past parents, but this school has not lived up to the experience. There is bullying going on at the school, and it seems some, bullying of teachers to do what is wanted related to how to treat parents. I am african-american and it seems that our population of students and parents are the direct target to this behavior, thus the retention rate of black parents has been consistently dropping since the top administration has come to the school. I have a fourth grader and we can not wait unitl we move to the next grade. My daughter has friends so we will wait it out. I tell any parent black or not think twice about bringing your child to this school."
—Submitted by a parent

This is a great school - The teachers and principal work really hard to give all children equal advantages. The PTA pays for Dance and PE for the kids as well as Art classes with an art teacher. My kids love the school and we couldn't be happier. There is a lot of parent involvement and almost everyday of the week there is a volunteer or two in my kids classrooms. We get newsletters home each week from the principal letting us know what is happening at school and our classroom teachers send a newsletter every other week with curriculum updates and volunteer opportunities. My kids are happy and so am I.
—Submitted by a parent

This school has the potential to be a great school. However the principal doesn't encourage parents to be involve in their child's education. According to the school policy, parents and other family members can only visit for 20 minutes. There are other Berkeley schools that welcome parents to be part of the learning environment and encourage parents to participate in their child's education.
—Submitted by a parent

We came to Berkeley Arts Magnet from a highly regarded, really expensive private school and we love it here. It is one of those rare places where you enter feeling stressed about work, etc., and then you always feel better after being at BAM. We came for the diverse, positive social environment, one that wouldn't tolerate negative behavior, and we found it. What completely surprised us was that there was also a rigorous, effective academic environment. Our daughter was learning about fractions in Kindergarten, and enjoying it! Her reading and math skills just took off. Communication with the parents is excellent (weekly newsletters from principal and teachers that parents have to sign, the earlier review must be misplaced). The teachers and principal work extremely hard to make it all happen, and the PTA is absurdly professional. The kids are happy, and there is great supervision on the playground and in the afterschool programs.
—Submitted by a parent

I was an Arts Magnet parent from 1981 through 1989. Now I will have been an Arts Magnet parent again, from 2004 through 10/01/09. Arts Magnet has consistently provided a diverse, safe, fun, and well rounded ediucational experience for my 2 girls.
—Submitted by a parent

The only school in Berkeley that retains a focus on art inclusion in the curriculum!
—Submitted by a parent

Very good school, but my child is now in an independent one because teacher quality isn't consistent. Whittier has a terrific philosophy and many dedicated people working on its programs, but its challenges, particularly class size, will not change. I must rate the teacher quality on this survey, but it's really a crap shoot--some are outstanding, others only average. Most attractive to BAM are its dynamic mix of children and its music and performing arts program. Children leave BAM benefitting from and valuing the fine and performing arts programs. If one's child were able to have BAM's best teachers at least every other year, the school could be rated higher. But a child's classroom assignment is left to either chance or parent politics.
—Submitted by a parent

My 10 has been at BAM since she was five and she started off great. When she reached 3rd grade her grades began to drop. BAM has the potential to be a wonderful educational environment but the classes are too large. In her 4th grade class there were 32 students to one teacher and one part time assistant. It is too easy to fall between the cracks when the class size is so large. BAM has a great staff and leadership, but they are trying to accommodate too many families and the children are failing.
—Submitted by a parent

The parent community is very involved and the teachers, for the most part, are very good.
—Submitted by a parent

Berkeley Arts Magnet (BAM) is a typical California city school trying to reach a diverse community in the best possible way according to the current standards and with little support from the state and federal governments. This school has wonderful kids and excellent teachers but is struggling to keep its identity (arts curriculum, 6th grade class), and excellence in the face of stringent financial contstraints. Isn't this the plight of many urban schools in the current climate? The demands are high, the issues are many, and the support is limited. What happens? Something gets sacrificed. There are probably better schools in the zone and district but if you're willing to put in the time, and if your child(ren) is resilient and self directed, this public school might be just great.
—Submitted by a parent