San Jose Elementary School

My son attended San Jose a few years ago. He has learning disabilities which they were aware of. At the time he was fairly new to the area and very quiet and shy, yet the principal was constantly accusing him of bullying others based not on anything he did, but things he allegedly said to groups of other kids as he usually walked alone on campus due to his shyness. For little things like dropping his pencil or getting out of his chair they did not allow him to go on a field trip he had his heart set on and the principal kicked him out of the school like 3 weeks before graduation based on something he allegedly said. However, I only wish he had left SJ sooner because it turned out he went to a great elementary and had an absolutely wonderful teacher his last weeks of elementary school and in just a few weeks made lots of friends. There tends to be a lot of gossip among office staff and parents at San Jose, more than at other schools and the principal apparently pays too much attention to this and my son got in the cross fire of it. Such childish behavior by adults and professionals should not be the source of unfair treatment of children. Hope SJ is doing better.
—Submitted by a parent

San Jose is definitly a diamond in the rough. I am a parent who lives in Garrison Jones Elementary school district who had to have her child moved to San Jose because of bullying. The Principal at Garrison JE just didn't feel it was her responsibility to take care of the kids who are being bullied it was the parents job to toughin up their kids. After switching from that A school to San Jose I have learned the grades down here in Florida mean nothing. This is absolutely a fantastic school.. Yes my daughter has been bullied by one kid but you know what the difference is? The leadership of the school has a ZERO tollerance. There is an amazing parent involvement and the Liaison of the school is AMAZING! She is a wealth of information who is always taking care of making our school more green and keeping community involvement. I also have a love for the Assistant Principal they are all amazing educators. The Principal at San Jose 100% takes care of her teachers and admin. in return they are happy which makes for GREAT teachers. I have not been this happy since I moved to Florida. Don't look at the school grade to make a decision on a school. Those schools worry more about grade then kid
—Submitted by a parent

My sons, as new students at SJ Elem, felt welcome & secure from the very first day in August. Since then, In only three and a half months, one of my children has risen 4 levels in his reading level through extra during school-time tutoring, consistent daily strategic teaching, and friendly systems for parent-child reading time at home. The other has been tracked for gifted classes, and both love going to school.. Our children's health is a priority there, they have two mornings of an extra 30 minutes of supervised play per week and teach the children about nutrition and cardio vascular health. My first and second graders love learning there, and based on the way the children at San Jose get along in the halls and in class, they have a very effective discipline policy. The staff has been very accessible and professional, including their wonderful principal Ms. Wolcott. Thanks for the daily experiences my sons tell me about, including the specials like PE Art and Music. What an amazing team of a faculty and support staff! Thanks for the daily inspiration that I see in my kids. They work hard there & they love it.
—Submitted by a parent

This is a great school. Both my kids went there and have moved on successfully. One child was gifted, the other with a specific learning disorder. It is unfair to assess a school by test results when transient students and learning disorders are averaged in with the remainder of the student body. San Jose currently has specialized classes for Autism. Previously they had classes for Emotionally Disturbed students. Take out those scores and you would see a much higher stat!

My son receives therapy at San Jose from the Pre-K program. I have been really impressed with his teachers and the staff. Love this school!
—Submitted by a parent

San jose is great school with great resources at hand. Parental involvement is lacking at the school and i say this as a very involved parent! despite a post below, pinellas county has a strong anti-bullying program in place! monika wolcott is a very considerate hard working principal and this is her third year at san jose, a five star school which has been selected among the 80 district elementary schools to participate in pilot programs. This is an excellent school with excellent teachers.
—Submitted by a parent

The San Jose Family is truly the best around. A hometown, neighborhood school doing whatever it takes to help children be successful. We absolutely love and care about kids and families like nobody's business! United We (DO) Soar!

New administration has a huge learning curve and unfortunately the students may suffer. Bullying is not addressed. This neighborhood school no longer has the quaintness it was famous for.
—Submitted by a parent

San Jose Elementary ROCKS! We have the best teachers, students, parents and community supporter.in Pinellas County. United We Soar!
—Submitted by a parent

Both Granddaughters attended San Jose; they are now and have been among the top in their class. The oldest is now President of er class and the youngest was in the gifted classes. Very proud of both of them; San Jose is doing something right.

I was a student at San Jose many moons ago and loved it. Both of my children attended San Jose, one in middle school and one starting fifth grade. Both are excelling in advanced/gifted classes. I volunteer in the school, sometimes with teachers that taught ME thirty years ago. The teachers are wonderful. They really care about their students. They inspired me to become an educator as well, I will be finishing up May 2009. Parental involvement is important to your child's education, this school makes involvement fun and easy!
—Submitted by a parent

Best school teachers great I loved everything about it espcially the fifth greade teacher Mr. Leanes he is funny, but can knock some sense into the children thats why hes my favorite my children went there for 3 years and they said 'I wish I can go back!'
—Submitted by a parent

I am a GrandMother of 3 great children. Two of them have attended San Jose Elementary School in Dunedin, Fl. for 2 years. This school gets my vote in being a Great School. The Principal is involved in everything with the students and parents. He has always been kind and considerate even though his schedule is always full. He is on-top-of-it in every aspect of educating,socializing and protecting our children each and every day. The Staff is also trained, dedicated to insure that our children are taught with the best possible methods available. We entrusted San Jose with our most precious children and are very happy that they responded with their best in every department. With thanks to all including the terrific office staff!
—Submitted by a parent

San Jose elementary school is the best elementary school for ESE students. This program needs to stay in place for years to come. Thank you San Jose for helping my son to exceed
—Submitted by Janet Sutera, a parent

This is a great school with very caring teachers and staff. My child is in K and I am amazed at the work they are asked to do. It's not just finger paint and edible glue, like I remember my first year. It's reading, writing, problem solving, and the whole gamut of educational preparation. I feel my child is growing steadily and happily in a supportive environment that includes community involvement and multi-cultural awareness. But parents must beware, all schools educate about 6 hours a day, you are expected to enhance and reinforce that education the other 18. This school expects no less, and for that I recommend them whole heartedly.
—Submitted by a parent

I have not been pleased with my childs learning experiences at this school.. they are more concerned about organizational skills than children learning achedemic coursesMy child is not happy at this school.. comes home feeling belittled at times.
—Submitted by a parent

This school is Dunedin's best kept secret. I refuse to move until my daughter completes 4th and 5th grade.
—Submitted by a parent