Kentwood Elementary School

Love it here! Have a kindergartener and a second grader and they are doing great at Kentwood. Great group of families and lots of teacher and staff support.
--Submitted by a parent

Kentwood was a disappointment. Cons: The cirriculum was uninspiring and my child was bored. No differentiated instruction for the high or the low. Lack of parent communication. Open House was held in the morning and the teacher taught like it was a typical school day. Basically, the school phoned it in. Lots of behavior issues in the classroom. The teaching staff is a hit or miss. Pros: There is a small group of dedicated parents trying to improve the school. The principal was swift to take action with any serious issues.
--Submitted by a parent

I have a whole new appreciation for Kentwood after leaving and attending a new charter school here in Westchester. After 2 months in a school that did absolutely nothing to educate my children we ran back to Kentwood as quick as we could. Jean Pennicooke is an outstanding principal. She goes above and beyond the call of duty and is a gift to Kentwood. The Vice Principal, Chris Ferreira, is a gem and it is a shame that we have to share her with two other schools. The teachers at Kentwood are loving and nurturing and truly care about their students. It is rare to find such an outstanding group of teachers in the midst of LAUSD's budget crisis. Kentwood is about to suffer more cuts for the 2011 school year unless the "Governor's Revenue Extension Proposal" makes it to the June ballot. I am confident that even though we may lose more funding that Kentwood will continue its high level of academics and the children will continue to thrive. My only negative comment is that there are some very gossipy, mean spirited parents at this school which make it hard for newcomers and other parents to feel comfortable and get involved. To those people I say....mind your own business and get a life!
--Submitted by a parent

I use to be a supporter of Kentwood. I removed my children from one school close by due to the lack of diversity in the teaching population to attend this school that showed so much promise. I was blind-sided. The high API and the CA Distinguished accolades fooled me. I should have seen it coming as an educator of 14 years. If your child comes to this school already knowing what they need to know to be successful, then he/she will do well. However, if your child comes in knowing only some information, don't expect much from the 3rd grade team. Innovation and exploration will definitely be lacking. Differentiation instruction? Forget it! They don't know how to differentiate outside of sending assignments home for the parent to teach. Did I also mention that they don't like the curriculum, but jump around and supplant it? As soon as an opening becomes available at this other school that believes in teaching the "whole child" and allows for growth, we are checking our children out of Kentwood. The principal is also no help. She only supports those who supports the pocketbook.
--Submitted by a parent

We are lucky parents of two children who have our kids attending Kentwood ES. Our third and oldest was honored by state senator last year thanks to the hard working and dedicated Kentwood staff. Starting from the principle Ms. Pennicooke, Mrs. Romine, Mr. Liebowitz, Mrs. Kim, Mrs. Mc broom and more, are all astonishing trustworthy professionals. Both of our kids have flourished and the teachers have been great partners in acting like parents, in teaching and raising them. We have effective PTO at Kentwood and parents are involved voluntarily with no obligations. There are many extracurricular activities. This school is getting incredibly better each year for the last six years despite the school budget cuts. Scores are shooting high in this distinguished elementary school.
--Submitted by a parent

From a parent of two Kentwood students: - Test scores are up for the fourth straight year or something. - Teachers are mostly veteran and mostly excellent. - Students are diverse (there is no majority race, but split something like 30-30-30-10ish). - Parents are involved (and there are plenty of low-impact ways for busy, working parents to participate as volunteers). - Administrators truly care about creating a nurturing environment. - There are extracurricular experiences like orchestra. It is definitely not perfect ... no school is. However, our kids would not want to be anywhere else.
--Submitted by a parent

Pt2 The school is in a nice area, parents are nice. Some parents didn't see what was going on unless they were there. Most parents receive irritating phones calls at work for minor things that can be dealt with or avoided by staff on the yard. To go to the extreme as principal has done rudely with me and I remained calm, I just complained to Dist #3. I suggest asking around LAUSD about her for reference. You'll be surprised if you get the right people in the Dist #3 area. As stated by a staff on the yard and teacher the 1st grade class my child was in had many issues brushed off by principal for certain kids for what reason I don't know. Maybe I didn't donate $, the way I dressed or "USE TO" lived out of Dist. But, I WAS AN INVOLVED SINGLE MALE PARENT.
--Submitted by a parent

Kentwood is not what it used to be. I have had three children to attend this school within the last fifteen years. It appears that Kentwood is loosing its multicultural environment. Years ago there were children of different ethnicities. Now you can see the environment or the multiculture climate declinining starting with the primary grades. As the children approach fourth and fifth grades you an see that there is less minorities. What is this about? This is not the Kentwood I've known and loved actually over fifteen years.
--Submitted by a parent

Kentwood also had a practice of passing out "been caught being good" tickets to children that were seen "being good". They gave 10 extra tickets to children whose parents attended a PTO meeting. They also had an ice cream party planned for children whose parents signed up to be volunteers while other children were to be excluded. When I brought to the attention of the vice principal and president how it is not appropriate to use children as pawns and discriminate against children that don't have good parents or single parents that are busy, I was removed from the yahoo group. Shame on Kentwood!
--Submitted by a parent

I was once a full supporter of Kentwood; however; after this years experience with Kentwood it has been a HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE!! I Thank God, this is my child's last year as they have shown to be void of care and common sense when it comes to children. I would not recommend Kentwood to any new coming parents and feel sorry for those that are still impressed by Kentwood as I once was until they showed how Arrogrant and Ignorant they are when it comes to the children and their needs. After my nightmare I recommend people stay clear from KENTWOOD if you want a constructive education and healthy enviroment for your child.
--Submitted by a parent