Skyview Academy

We are finishing our second year at the school and are, overall, happy with it. The teachers are caring and we think the school does a good job with reinforcing good character. We do like the Core Knowledge idea, but worry a bit about whether the math focuses enough on application and too much on memorization. We'd like to see more consistent emphasis on requiring correct spelling on all assignments, too. The administration is remote, though friendly and very competent, and the board is insular. It is difficult to know where to turn if you have a question or a worry. It's not always clear that there is a place or a person to whom you can bring concerns or inquiries. That might be growing pains or it might be a reflection of the very tight control over all aspects of the school kept by the founding board of directors. The volunteer program has unwritten rules. No moms can volunteer for recess duty, it seems, and dads are not welcome in classrooms, generally speaking. It's hard to get chances to volunteer, too, as favored insiders tend to be given first chances to meet the hours quota. The kids and teachers are nice, the building is great, the future looks good. Again, a good choice.
—Submitted by a parent

If you're reading this to find a school, you know only people who are very happy or very angry usually write reviews. I am neither - here is an objective review to help consider whether or not this is the school for you. I have two kids at Skyview. We have been there since it opened. We are content there - It has had it's share of growing pains, but it is a good place to be. The new principal is GREAT. He supports our hard-working, dedicated teachers - yes some of them are NEW, but they are energetic and effective. The curriculum is challenging and rich. The learning environment IS structured with an emphasis on responsibility and upholding and adhering to standards as an individual and as a community. All schools struggle with bullying, kids can be mean and it's a tough nut to crack but our admin. does NOT tolerate it, nor do the teachers AND most parents want SVA to be good place to learn and are receptive to dialogue on how we can all get along better. There is a lot of homework in 1-4 compared to the neighborhood schools (it evens out in 5th + ) and you HAVE to be involved in your kids' education. If I had it to do over, I'd choose SVA again. It's a good fit for our family.
—Submitted by a parent

This school is AMAZING! You get one on one attention if you need it. You get the correct education for the level you are at. The teachers and students are both great leaders. The students are always very excepting to everyone. Its like a BIG family. Everyone has respect for one another. The students are going to have a good life ahead of them because this school is a great collage prep and a school that will give the education your student you will need to achieve in life. This school deserves a 10!!!

I have a child in Kindergarten and a child in 2nd grade and I can't speak highly enough of this school. The teachers are involved, the curriculum is superb, and the atmosphere has a vibe that makes my kids proud to go to this school. My kids are exited to do homework- it's the first thing they want to do when they get home. They have great relationships and have not had any experience with bullying which is unfortunate to hear. I think every school has some drawbacks but with the school being NEW, I feel an excitement from the faculty to make this a great school and keep the drawbacks I see (which are small) moving in the right direction.
—Submitted by a parent

We love SkyView Academy, it is a great school for my two elementary children. We've had excellent teachers, nice students in the classes, very involved and friendly parents and a leadership team very committed to academics. I think the 2012-13 school year will improve tremendously with a new principal and the addition of new students and a few new teachers. We've never had a negative experience, I regret to hear about some bully instances, but fortunately, we've not had that experience. All positive. My kids wake up everyday happy and excited to go to school.
—Submitted by a parent

I also agree with the 8-12 review. My son attended this school and was bullied regularly at recess, in the lunchroom and in special classes. It broke my heart to see his personality completely change during the year he atteneded this school. The administration offices at the school had no interest in listening to the issues that were happening under their roof. I will say his teacher tried to help but unfortuantely it wasn't enough to change the situation. I began the year excited for my son to attend Sky View as their reputation in academics was excellent. By the end of the year I was so stressed about my son's situation I couldn't wait for the school year to end. My son couldn't learn in an environment were he was bullied on a daily basis so in his case attending Sky View actually set him back academically. He is so happy and excited to return to his old school. I agree the grass is not always greener.
—Submitted by a parent

I kind of agree with the latest 8/12/12 review. I am not able to find 4/11/12 , 2/8/12 and 10/1/11 reviews anymore?
—Submitted by a parent

It doesn't even feel right giving this school one star. This school was the biggest mistake we a ever made. Our child was constantly bullied again and again at this school. Honestly, I cant even type this without bringing tears to my eyes. The concepts and ideals of this school sound great but they lack the leadership from a non-existant administration when a problem such as bullying arises. I am so happy to see the genuine excitement in my childs eye to go back to his old school. Our family will take our experience at Skyview as a learning experience that the grass isn't always greener on the other side.
—Submitted by a parent

The CO TCAP results are out. That would be a good indicator of how the school compares to others.
—Submitted by a parent

We have attended Skyview for 2 years and will be returning for a 3rd. Both of my children are getting exactly what they need with the ability grouping and I feel very lucky to be part of this school. The homework is appropriate (10-15 minutes for my 1st grader: 45 minutes for my 4th grader) and the teachers are great. Yes, some of them are newly out of college but there are some that have several years of teaching experience. The administration could improve on being more visible and available but overall do a good job. The tardy policy is in place to teach responsibility for the kids. When they get a job tardiness will not be accepted so it's good to set the expectation now. I will also say that this school is not for everyone. This school is there for those parents who are more concerned about their childs education than whether there are all of the after school activities that they want or whether the tardy policy is too extreme. Also, in regards to the detention policy for 4th & 5th grade, the administration did what they needed to to enfore responsibility. Again, this school is not for everyone, but it's the perfect fit for us. And my children love attending Skyview.
—Submitted by a parent

SVA elementary offers a solid education but lacks in leadership as their actions don't consistently demonstrate the character the school says it has and wants to have. The school also lacks common after school groups. There are no clubs such as Math Olympics, Science Matters, KidzStage, Chess club. While DI and Choir are offered, for a school of this size, the activites are very limited.
—Submitted by a parent

I am very happy with SkyView Academy. I feel that the rules and expectations are well articulated and are not very different from other charter schools. I am impressed by the academic rigor at the school. Homework is expected daily, but this is stated in the parent's handbook. Compared to her neighborhood that placed 30 kindergardeners in a class room and had low performance expectations, SkyView is a challenge but worth the effort. As for the culture, I feel more welcome in the school than in my neighborhood school. The staff makes an effort to recognize and acknowledge parents. The level of information (class room website, e-mails, responses from teachers) makes staying informed of my child's performance easy.
—Submitted by a parent

It is amazing to me that, as of today, half of the posts are discussing the school's tardy policy. This isn't what a great school is about. My son has attended SkyView for two years. We've had a great experience with his 2nd and 3rd grade teachers. The Administration makes an effort to inform and involve parents. We moved from Cougar Run E.S., which was a good school as well. However, SkyView's ability groupings and the Administration's wilingness to listen to parents influenced us to change schools. I really appreciate SkyView's Founders, Administration, and Teachers. I wouldn't want my son at any other school.
—Submitted by a parent

I think the administration is not attentive to parents. There is definitely an attitude of "We are doing you a favor by letting your student attend our school." I think this is part of a marketing ploy to make SkyView seem like an "elite" school. However, I think it is the wrong approach to take with parents. And, I hope the board and administration will rethink this approach and approach parents as partners in education.
—Submitted by a parent

We have LOVED Skyview since it opened! The teachers are amazing and what a great group of involved parents. My daughter has been challenged as well as given extra help where needed.. So nice to have each student's needs met. Skyview us off to a great start and can only get better with time!
—Submitted by a parent

Skyview Academy is an AMAZING school! My son is only in Pre-K, but he is already above and beyond his peers who attend public school. Uniforms, Spanish everyday, and structured classrooms with tons of parental involvement, are just a few things that make this school great. The pros FAR outweigh the cons of this school, and if you let a little thing like a few minutes in the morning sour this school for you (see previous review), then you may not be happy with any school. The school is constantly improving and growing (it's only in its second year). I say, if you're lucky enough to get accepted, don't pass up this chance of a lifetime for your children!!!
—Submitted by a parent

I found 12/15/11 parent's comments were offensive. I think you are the one who don't understand the system nor reading the communication. If you would bother to read the first parent's remark, you would see that the parent said the child arrived at the school's lobby at 8:13 a.m. If they could read the time on the lobby's clock, that obviously meant that the door was not locked, but the child was still marked tardy. Getting inside the school before 8:15 am does not guarantee you won't be marked tardy. Attending the assembly does not guarantee you won't be marked tardy. These are NOT the measures for tardiness. The measure is that your child must be in his or her seat ready to learn before 8:15 a.m. This shows that many parents, including you 12/15/11 parent, not understanding the system and school policy. If you go to read the student handbook, you will see that it is not very clear cut. There is some confusion - b/c like you I thought as long as my child went to the assembly she was safe. Boy, was I wrong. I went to both the teacher and school administrator TRYING to tell them the policy not being clear. Both of them ignored me. Neither acknowledged the problem.
—Submitted by a parent

It is unfortunate that parents who don't understand the system, or reading the communication, spend time on this site complaining about it. To clarify a few of the comments and mis-perceptions. Tardiness is not reported from the classroom. A student who is tardy is actually stopped at the front desk and held there until assembly is over. These are the students who are marked tardy. This is because if the student who is tardy goes back to their classroom, there will not be anyone there, as the class has gone to the assembly which starts at 8:15. If your student is chronically tardy, that is not the schools fault. If your student is rarely tardy, then why worry about it. As far as the school being closed without it being on the calendar, the ONLY time that happens is on a snow day. Parents have to take some responsibility here. The testing that occurred was to establish baseline skills and then monitor growth, to make sure the school is providing the correct instruction and curriculum for students to grow and learn. This is not about how can we get high test scores, but about how can we know that students are really learning. I am a parent, not a staff member writing this.
—Submitted by a parent

We attended Skyview last year and have since left. I was attracted to the Core Knowlege curriculum, "Character Education," and promise of top notch, seasoned teachers. As it turned out, our teacher had been out of school for less than a year, and the Character Ed came off as a disingenuous afterthought. My impression was that the school's main priority was was to drive the students to demonstrate very high test scores. I agree that kids should be challenged, but my daughter was continually nervous about performing well to maintain her placement in the high ability group. This very distressed behavior was not normal for her. She also had at least 45 min of homework/night (1st gr), which is 4-5 times the amount that had been discussed prior to the start of school. I found the Dean to set a negative, highly controlled atmosphere. She had no interest in feedback from families who attend the school. Her main priority appeared to be maintaining control of all situations and delivering discipline. I was very disappointed in our experience. Any interest in partnering with parents was limited to a parent's required volunteer time. Admin never asked us why we left the school.
—Submitted by a parent

So far my child has had excellent teachers here. It is amazing what she learned her first year and I can't wait to see what she will learn this year. The ability grouping is fantastic and I feel makes the most of learning. The school seems to respond to parent concerns. I have never had an instance nor heard of one where the school is closed and it's not on the calendar. My child has never been marked late and she's gotten there exactly at 8:15 several times. And if you attend parent education sessions that they have you will have a clear idea as to the direction of the school.
—Submitted by a parent