La Mesa Elementary School

The best school in the Monterey District. The Principal gets bad reviews, but she works hards and cares for both the teachers and students. Overall the teachers are great, one of my son's teachers is the best I have ever seen. Hate we will be moving soon. There are alot of issues with funding, but because of large amount of retired and transient population, it is very hard to get funding for the schools in this district. Class size is large, but we moved from one the best school districts in VA, and it was not much better. For public schools to work, there needs to be involvement from the community and this schoold does well with what available. I will be happy if our next school is this good.
--Submitted by a parent

When you compare La Mesa to the surrounding public schools, it is, quite simply above average... however, if you compare it with the education that you would like your child to have, it falls woefully short. Our son attended La Mesa for kindergarten in 2008-2009 and had a wonderful experience (19 students in his class, superb teacher, PE, art, etc). At the start of his first grade year, however, his class had 36 kids. One teacher... 36 kids... Within a couple of weeks, our child didn't want to go to school anymore... it was "too crazy" as he put it. We volunteered 4-8 hours every week for a month to see what was happening in the classroom -- sheer and utter chaos. During the fall break, we tightened up our financial belt and moved our child to Junipero Serra School in Carmel.
--Submitted by a parent

This school is a joke. It is filthy, the cafeteria is run by one lady who heats up the pre-packaged meals and also works the cash register. The meals are very unhealthy. While some of the teachers have great intentions, they lack the funding, supplies and support from the school to accomplish all they want/need to accomplish. Our daughters teacher used to send home weekly newsletters loaded with typos! The only reason this school does not have a lower overall score is because parents are forced to make up at home for what their children get in class. My wife constantly used to say: "With all the homework our daughter brings home, I wonder if they do anything at all in class during the day besides take numerous recesses?" We moved to Carmel Valley after six months just to get our daughter into a better school.
--Submitted by a parent

We are ending our 2nd year here at La Mesa. My main complaints about the school regard the overall district's/state's inability to provide a curriculum that challenges my student, too many students per class (which is becoming a trend in CA), and the absence or under-representation of many positions that I feel are necessary in any school. These positions include a school counselor, school nurse, vice principal, GATE instruction, and full-time enrichment programs, not unlike most public schools in this state. What makes this school great is the number of parents who volunteer. We also have a lot of foreign students which makes for unique learning opportunities about others' cultures. The faculty and staff make the most out of their resources and the PTA is generally well-supported. Overall a good choice for this area.
--Submitted by a parent

This school is ridiculous! The teachers do not pay attention to the student...My daughters first report card conference was the first time her teachers had ever seen any of her class work! They also trust 10 and 11yr old students to grade their own papers or have the student next to them grade them, this seems like a good idea except the teacher don't collect the work to make sure they are done correctly therefore many students are failing when the parents bring it to the attention of the teachers. Its sad to say but I wish my child was never enrolled in this school and by the time first report cards came home the school year was almost over. When its 'benchmark' test time the teachers cram the students with the info they need just to pass and keep scores up! Do not put your child here
--Submitted by a parent

La Mesa Has wonderful teachers but that is where it ends. The PTA works hard to provide art, music, pe and computers. There is a lot of parent but as in most places it is the same few people every time. The PTA board is not full and no one is willing to step up. There might not be a PTA next year so no art, music, pe or computers! As for the Principal all one needs to do is listen to kids or parents outside to know how they feel. The superintendent for the district is making even more drastic changes that will hurt this school even more. The building is out of date and in disrepair in many areas. There is garbage all over the school and it is left there until it blows away or a parent picks it up. Put your child somewhere else!
--Submitted by a parent

La Mesa Elementary has been a very large military population due to DLI and NPS. It has been good learning environment for my children. As mentioned by others, this school benefits from active participation of the community that it serves. Parental involvement has been discouraged though during the current school year due to a change in one of the administration positions, which has led to declining morale (voiced by both parents and teachers). This school however, has held its place as one of if not the best in MPUSD. Just make sure that you insert yourself and stay on top of your child's academic progress.
--Submitted by a parent

La Mesa is a public school, run like a private school. The teachers are excellent. I've never met a harder working group of teachers. Stay away from the front office, if you can. They are rude, and will make you mad. The principal is new, and has never been a principal before. But, if you want the best education possible for your child, La Mesa school is the best place to be.
--Submitted by a parent

We squeezed into a small house here so that our child could go to LaMesa. Looking back, we may have lived in Carmel or PG. This is the only good school in a failing district, which is dealing with severe budget cuts that put a huge strain on the schools. Next year we hear that there will be at least 30 kids/class (even K-3). We may or may not have art, music, PE, and computer (all funded by the PTA).We had a very rough start this year (my kid had three teachers in three months), but things are better now. I had problems with the principal, but now feel that she is doing a good job overall. Teachers are excellent and are doing the best they can given the cuts. Based on next year's outlook, we are moving our child to a private school at Christmas, before things get worse.
--Submitted by a parent

The school might be old and the principal new, but La Mesa is a great school. It's not perfect - because of the CA financial issues, the classrooms have more kids than I'd like. But they're doing the best they can. The teachers here are fantastic. I don't have to supplement my kids at home. I don't know anyone who does. In fact, my daughter attended K-1 at La Mesa before we moved to one of the best school districts in VA. She was far ahead of what was being taught in VA, especially in Math. When we moved back, we insisted on living in La Mesa for the school. I can't emphasize enough how wonderful the teachers are at La Mesa. They work so hard and really do care about the kids. And as for the office staff, it has been a pleasure dealing with them this year.
--Submitted by a parent