Ladera Ranch Elementary School

I like the school. I find that the parents are very involved and that does go a long way. A lot depends on the individual teachers your Kid gets for each grade. We are happy with the teachers that my Daughter was privileged to have in all Her grades so far. We parents take active interest in my kids school - homework, tests, additional practice, .... and I think that is very important in addition to the teachers you get. The school has very good API scores and API growth though I think they give you just one dimension and do not present the whole picture. The school has excellent facilities I must say. Things can be much better though in my opinion. I do agree with some of the comments from other parents that there is too much (emphasis on) fluffy stuff like fundrisers, drives, sellathons, ... etc. I don't need/want my Kids to be expert salesmen/saleswomen.
--Submitted by a parent

Always somethin...But I am not pleased with this school since we started. My child is in kindergarten, and the way things are going, my child will be hating school for the rest of his life. Our teacher happens to be very passive, and just doesnt seem like she wants to be there. I know you happen to be a parent too but by gosh, take advantage of some after school program so your own children doesnt need to stay there in your classroom. The principal is very defensive when you bring up something to her attention.
--Submitted by a parent

I saw a new posted 1 star yesterday, but someone was removed it. Please be honest with whatever parent commend. Telling the truth is helping the school, principal and management to be better for our school. If you still keep doing only posted the best commend, then your website is always lier. Thank you for your understanding
--Submitted by a parent

This school is definitely not as good as it shows here. I just pulled out my kid this school year. Can you believe that teachers' kids were allowed to stay during a parent-teacher conference??? I wish I could watch my kid at work!! Very unprofessional!!!
--Submitted by a teacher

Thank you Ladera Ranch for teaching & loving the whole child! My kids are blessed to have such a caring group of educators. My family could not be happier with the wonderful teachers, fabulous principal, and a fun-loving and supportive PTA! This is truly a model school!
--Submitted by a parent

LRES is an excellent school!! You can't argue with an API score of well over 900 for 2 years in a row. Almost all of the teachers are incredibly talented and extremely dedicated to our students. Meg Gwyn does her best to balance all factors. If it weren't for budget cuts from the state and the drama from our school board, life at LRES would be just about perfect. We should be grateful for our PTA - those parents have worked exceptionally hard to provide many wonderful things for our students and our school. And I have found the parents to be very friendly! Wonderful school - we are blessed!
--Submitted by a parent

Why do we need a principal like Meg Gwyn. She basically just eats, sleeps, and plays with our taxpayer's money. Look at the core curriculum at this school; writing, reading, and math are far behind other schools. Does she care??? All she cares about is to "FIT IN" to the PTA girls asking for MONEY paractically every month. Party is her goal. Parents are unfriendly just like Meg Gwyn.

Meg Gwyn has poor leadership. She has been led by the PTA instead. It's time for a change. We need a new principal.
--Submitted by a parent

The teachers are certainly "dialed in" but the problem comes from the principal and trickles down. There's no emphasis on core curriculum, e.g. reading, writing, math. Instead you get bombarded with emails and flyers about golf tournaments or parties disguised as after school activities and all demanding money. What really rankles you is the amount of class time diverted to things like the Jog-a-Thon, Jump Rope for Heart, Walking for Something or Other. There's an imbalance between the value of education and these PTA sponsored activities that really contribute nothing to my child. The principal, Meg Gwyn, however, is in the PTA's backpocket. It's sad really...it's like she wants to be accepted by the "popular girls" (and just to give you a picture, there's a hierarchy with the mom volunteers at LRES: room moms are at the bottom and PTA moms are the ruling clique). Gwyn will either brown-nose you or give you the run-around, neither of which is conduct befitting a school principal. After several years of this nonsense, I'm joining the growing contingent of parents who are pulling their kids out of LRES and into a private school.
--Submitted by a parent

Wonderful school! My daughter has attended K-2nd there so far & we can't imagine being anywhere else! Great teachers, a lot of parent involvement and a real sense of community.
--Submitted by a parent