St. Joseph Elementary School

My daughter attended this school from kindergarten to fourth grade. There are some excellent teachers, but sadly there are also horrible inexperienced teachers managing classrooms that are far too big. Older grades have only one teacher for up to 28 students. My daughter had a learning disability which was completely ignored because her teacher was incapable and overwhelmed. . My child was given above average grades, and on the last day of school I was given her Iowa test score which showed her as 1 year behind. More up to date testing in public school measured her as 3years behind in reading. She had received A's and B's in fourth grade yet only read at 1st grade level. Had her teacher done her job correctly my daughter would have received the help she needed. I strongly recommend against this school if your child is anything but an average student. For us, SJS in Danbury did not accurately measure progress, nor do they take responsibility when one their teachers horribly failed a child. I met with the Deputy Super intendant, and he is only concerned with discussing his own past achievements- it was a joke to speak to him. Think long and hard before paying them to hurt your kid.
—Submitted by a parent

We have attended St. Joseph's pre-k for the past two years. The teachers are excellent. They provide great support for the pre-k student. On the negative side, the class sizes are very large (19 students) and if one of the teacher or the teacher's aide is absent, they do not always have a substitute, so the one teacher must supervise 19 children on her own. I would not recommend the aftercare program for younger students. Last year, pre-k and kindergarten students were in a separate school with very appropriate activities for their age. This year, the principal has stated that there are staffing as an issue, so all students pre k through 8th grade are in the same room. Some of the after care teachers are great at playing with the younger kids, but two of the staff sit at the table and do not interact with the younger children.
—Submitted by a parent

St Joseph School has a new Principal this year and many new and wonderful things are Happening!

As both a teacher and a parent, my children did wonderfully at St. Joseph School. The teaching staff is committed to having our children excel, their music and fine arts programs are awesome! Classes are not too large, they are divided into two classes each grade of 15 kids each, including Kindergarten! Their after school programs are wonderful - they offer fine arts, music lessons, choir, golf and more. We loved it!
—Submitted by a parent

St. Joseph's is wonderful. I have (2) children that attend and they are both excelling. The administration and staff were great with my working around my son's handicap. My daughter was reading proficiently before she finished Kindergarten. I would highly recommend this school to anyone who wants a great mix of education and religion.
—Submitted by a parent

My child recently complete kindergarten. I found the administration to be distracted to curriculum issues. The teacher and aide were nurturing, however the classs was large and the 1-1 attendance was lacking. Overall, a mediocre expereince.
—Submitted by a parent