Burton International School

my child was picked on everyday. Her grades and test scores were slipping horrendously. I addressed the problem to the staff, principal, and superintendent. Nothing ever changed and she still was picked on until I pulled her out of the school. She now goes to Bates Academy and is doing amazing. She has made tons of friends and her grades are excellent. I suggest that every parent that cares about there child's safety please take them out of this horrible school.
—Submitted by a parent

My oldest daughter graduated from Burton and now my youngest daughter is attending. Although, I will be removing my daughter to go into a neighborhood school. This is because of burn-out from extensive studies over the course of six years. I recommend if a parent sends their child to Burton be prepared to work along side your child in their studies. Burton is a very good and fast paced school that place high demands on the child. The school is very challenging, so if you want your child to succeed at Burtion Brushup on your own academic skills, you will need it.
—Submitted by Nicholas Shephard, a parent

I went to Burton for two days and couldn't stand it. I had to transfer schools in the beginning of the year. They were teaching things that I learned thee previous year. I would not recommend attending Burton International.
—Submitted by a student

My oldest daughter graduated from Burton and went to Cass Tech High school graduating with Honors. Now she is attending Eastern Michigan University for Engineering. I would like to thank Burton for all their efforts to making this possible. My youngest daughter is now attending Burton International and knows that it is very, very, very challenging but she is up to the challenge. Burton is a school for students who are properly groomed in Math, Science, and Reading. Parents will need to be able to work with their child on assignments if they want their child to succeed there. So, if you are not somewhat educated and able to contribute to your child education then it may be difficult for your child.
—Submitted by a parent

Although this school is an 'international' school, they actually don't teach the students exactly how important it is to respect and appreciate other cultures. The school has a few excellent teachers but I found their curriculum lacking in preparing their students for high school. They could also work on their extracurricular activities, considering the only thing they really have going on after school is basketball practice. I'm a graduate of 2005 and currently going to Renaissance High School and I found it hard to adjust to their strenuous curriculum since I wasn't well prepared for it.
—Submitted by a former student

I was very excited when my oldest child was admitted to Burton. I had dreamt of my children going to Burton since I was in High School because of their excellent reputatipn. However, I found that all Burton can really offer is its reputation. There were very few extra caricular activities, the school itself was a dump, and I found the Principal difficult to deal with. More than anything they stressed test scores. With so much focus on MEAP I think they have lost sight of the children. Since they are a DPS they were subject to the same budget crisis as the rest of the district which forced the really good teachers to leave. After 3 years I decided to remove my oldest child from Burton and enroll her in a new school with my Kindergardener. I was very disappointed in Burton.
—Submitted by a parent

Burton International is only geared toward children that are advanced. If your child is having any difficulties they offer mimimum help. This school is definitely over rated. I would suggest this school if your child is well advanced and already know the materials being taught. I can say it use to be a good school, but a 'reputation' for being a good school some how overpowered the genuine concern to help each child on an individual level.
—Submitted by a parent

I used to attend Burton International. It was a good school. I felt as though Burton was my home away from home. It helped me make my way into Cass Tech. I admit, I thought the school was kind of cheap, but hopefully that's changed now. But overall, you won't regret sending your children to Burton. -Simi
—Submitted by Simi Razvi, a former student

This school is geared towards diversity which is good, but does not nurture children who are educationaly sound but may be lacking in their social skills. This is a public school but wants to weed out families who don't fit into 'their norm.' But on the up side, children are more exposed to educational experiences that regular neighborhood schools don't take advantage of.
—Submitted by a parent

I have two sons attending Burton International, and my first criteria for choosing a school is if my children are happy with the school. My boys are perfectly happy with their school. So if they feel comfortable there, then I am happy as well because academically and socially it is a good fit for my sons. I also like the school and try to participate in all the activities that I can. I love their incentive program for good behavior - The Reward Store - students recieve 'Burton Bucks' for good behavior to purchase items in the store. I love the Principal, Dr. Wilson, you can tell that he loves his job and he is all about helping our students to excell. The teachers are fabulous because they also love their school and are willing to follow Dr. Wilson's lead and they too does what it takes to help our kids.
—Submitted by Sandra Meadows, a parent

My initial findings on Burton International were great. From kindergarten through the 3rd or 4th grades, my childs experiences were fantastic. A couple of the better teachers left Burton soon, thereafter. His science teacher was the absolute best! He was, from the beginning the type of teacher to get involved, offer suggestions and truly cared. I found that in my childs last couple of years there, that his experiences were not so great, anymore. I saw about four principals come and go. It seemed that if a student was not at the top of his academic game that he or she could easily be put aside to focus on those that did not require as much attention. This is unfortunate and hopefully this is no longer the situation. The idea of only teaching the gifted was not made clear to some of the parents either.
—Submitted by a parent

I am a graduate of this school. I now attend Renaissace High, and i am getting ready to graduate. I believe that this school prepared me very well for my future endeavors. I highly recommend this school.
—Submitted by a former student

This school is a good school the teacher my son had from K-8 making it easier for her to get to high school, the after school programs ae free except for karate. They include volleyball, basketball, handbells and violins, chess,and prep. The principall has done a fine job off keeping the school in a clean enviroment for the students to learn, their are also activities like multi-cultural day which focus on different types of backrounds. The homework given it suitable enough for my son to learn and the teacher would revise with a test every friday. I would reccomend this school to everybody.
—Submitted by Francis, a parent