St. Thomas Aquinas Elementary School

There has been NO crackdown on bullying at this school. In my opinion and those of my children, it has gotten much worse. As for the academics, they are just okay. STA is no All Saints or any of the other Catholic Schools in Wichita that are performing better. I don't know if we will even stick around for middle school.
--Submitted by a parent

I have three children who go to STA. My wife and I have been very happy with the quality of education and religious studies. We have seen strong emphasis on both and hope it continues. The test scores are some of the best in the state. Our children are more involved religiously than we ever were. There are tons of opportunities to volunteer your time if you are so inclined. Regarding the bullying comments, I can tell you the school over the last 2 years has clamped down on bullying to the point of almost being overly sensitive to it. My analysis as to why parents are critical of the school has come down to this: parents do not want o hold their kids to a higher standard. I won't deny the school has high requirements from an academic perspective. If you don't want to push your children to acheive their full potential then you may want to reconsider taking your child to STA. However, if you want your child to excel and be challenged and you are willing as a parent to not always be their friend, but instead be their mother and father, then this may be the place for you.
--Submitted by a parent

STA is hardly a Catholic School. The faith is barely a garnish on the educational plate. My son says some of his friends put the Eucharist in their pocket instead of in their mouth. They obviously don't understand the importance of their actions. The bullying here is unbelievable. I agree that the environment is aggressive and that almost encourages this bad behavior. The Priest has detatched from the school and the principal is not doing her job. It is time for the Bishop to clean house.
--Submitted by a parent

The culture of bullying at this school starts at the top. The principal is a bully, the vice principal is a bully and like the last person stated, the priest does NOT get involved and you can't even reach him when you have a problem. It is shocking but this school cares FAR more about money and their state assessment scores than about anything else. The idea that they truly care about their students' souls is a joke. This is just a rich kid school where parents buy a private education and if your aren't rich ENOUGH the education your child gets is not even up to the level of "mediocre."
--Submitted by a parent

When you have a problem, there is no one to go to. My child was bullied terribly and nothing was done because of the politics between the families and the administration. The parents of the bully are more well known then my family and child and so I guess we will just have to suffer, You cannot go talk to the Priest, he has people put in place to shield him from conflict. Nothing ever changes or gets solved. I find the middle school to be a terrible place and maybe we need a middle school principal and a lower school principal since nothing seems to ever get done. I have thought about pulling my child but we have a long history there. I find the whole situation very depressing.
--Submitted by a parent

As a former employee at this school, I witnessed both good and bad things. Yes, there is some politicing at this school, and that comes with the territory of a school in general, and with the certain wealth that some families have. There are also many great things about this school. There are learning opportunities and aides to help students who struggle and those who excell. There are, like in any school, some really great teachers, and some not so great. There are some problems, but honestly what school doesn't have problems? It is a large school, with large class sizes, and with that comes more numerous problems because of more personalities. And not every teacher or authority is going to know how to deal with all of those personalities. I do believe that this is a well rounded school, and the students get an above average education opportunity level. There is a lot of politics that go through this school and it consists of both the parent-body and the staff-body. But what can you expect when you put over 700 people together and try to get them to agree on the same thing? Some students do well in a large setting, others, in a small setting. Just find what fits your child.

It saddens me to see all of these negative reviews, when, at least I think, these are minorities feelings about STA. I have three children at the school currently (K-5), and have truly enjoyed the time my family has spent in the school. St. Thomas has wonderful parental support, the teachers are amazing and truly care about their students, and I have noticed a sense of community this year. Is everything at this school perfect? No, but my family really enjoys being at STA.
--Submitted by a parent

My children are out shadowing at other schools. I have had about all I can take from this school and the administration. We need a new principal and it looks like it is never going to happen and my family is tired of waiting.
--Submitted by a parent

Great Church, Great People, Terrible Middle School. The school could benefit from an intervention from the Diocese.
--Submitted by a parent

I grew up in this Parish. I went to school here. It is not the same. I am worried about my kids here. We are looking at homes in Andover so we can bypass STA. We need a new principal and a new direction.
--Submitted by a parent