Gilbert W McNeal Elementary School

My kids have done wonderfully at this school since 2007. Although my kids are not in the gifted program, the school has a great gifted program implemented by the new principal. Almost all of the teachers are gifted qualified and do a great job with the kids. Many of the full-time teachers and Subs live nearby and/or have kids in the school. Best advice is to take a tour.
--Submitted by a parent

My son has special needs and we only attended this school in order to get an IEP for him so that he could qualify for the McKay Scholarship. The administration at the school, especially the principal, have been less than helpful. I've even been called on the carpet by the principal when I questioned what was being done with my son. If your student has special needs, choose another school!
--Submitted by a parent

We absolutely love this school. My child's 1st grade teacher is looping with the class, so for 2nd grade my child will have the same teacher and classmates from 1st grade. This makes great sense to me....these kids will continue to excel in academics. The teachers, office staff and parents are very involved. The principal is awesome!
--Submitted by a parent

The new administration is a mess, FCAT scores are way down, and the staff is being all shifted around. My fifth grade daughter is going to have a former kindergarten teacher next year. I'm glad we only have one more year because McNeal seems to be taking a nose dive.
--Submitted by a parent

We moved here this year and my son started third grade. We love the school. We love his teacher and when I called the school at the beginning of the year to jump on a reading problem he had, everyone seemed to jump at the problem and do their best to help him. He has come so far already. My only VERY SMALL issue is he was placed in a class that had a very large number of special students. (for lack of a better word). After looking at the other third grade classes, I just wished they had been better split up into each class. I will leave it at that not wanting to hurt anyones feelings. Overall, we are very happy and looking forward to next year!!
--Submitted by a parent

Great school...if you never need any support from staff, or your child never has any learning style difficulties. Expect to be on your own. Willis is a much better alternative.
--Submitted by a parent

I'm very disappointed with the new administration. Failure to rectify situation concerning child's placement. Bad environment for a child to learn. It is a sad situation for what had been a good first 2 years at this school.
--Submitted by a parent

My daughter is a kindergartener this year and so far we are very pleased with the school. The facilities are excellent, and we really like the engineering program. We find the atmosphere is very warm and friendly. Both teachers and students made us feel right at home.
--Submitted by a parent

this school is great. it is like a mini college inside.. it is soooo nice.. my daughter loves it.
--Submitted by a parent

McNeal Elementary is a great school! My son started the first year it opened and the staff and administration handled the overcrowding very well. The principal has created an exceptional learning environment for the kids. The teachers are outstanding! I would recommend this school to anyone.
--Submitted by Tonya Short, a parent