Avenue City Elementary School

I have been in the Avenue City School district for 28 yrs. This smaill school setting, with a wonderful staff and small class sizes makes this school the BEST! We have high expectations of kids graduating 8th grade here and they usually go on to be top-notch high school students. I would recommend this school to everyone wanting to give their children the best education.
--Submitted by a parent

I love this school and its administration and staff. My children have attended this school for 4 years. As an active volunteer, I have the opportunity to eyewitness the highest level of intergrity in our staff. They truly care about each child. I am constantly amazed at the passion and commitement the teachers give to each individual student. Not only are these kids challenged academically, they are encouraged to enhance their own talents and interests. There is an open door policy to our administration who are always very available and welcome constructive criticism. Our principal is a very engaged and caring leader. She takes a personal interest in each child and daily does activities with them like saying the pledge and interactive activities to start their day off. I am priviledged to have such an amazing public school to send my children! It does not get better than this!
--Submitted by a parent

If you like small schools and rural america, this is the place for you. Its a great little school with quality teachers, teachers that do care about their students and their education. The leadership at the school is good. One example, if there are bullying issues, they are addressed immediately. Stay away if you are a parent that does not want to spend time to help your child learn or get bound up in the shorts about having a casual dress up day. It really is a bit of an oasis. I did not give AC 5 out of 5 starts because there are limited extra curricular activities and slow on boarding to new families.
--Submitted by a parent

I love this school! I know some parents may be rubbed the wrong way by the admin, but they treat parents like adults and they expect parents to engage with their children and share in their success. If you are looking for a babysitter or education factory-good luck. Parenting is a real job that involves working with a school not just dropping kids off at the front door.
--Submitted by a parent

Great school and environment but the principal is not so good. I have proof she fired a very nice sweet computer teacher for her own personal gain. Don't go here not worth the hassle. I know I was a student there with a 3.0 GPA average A/B and found the principal rude and hateful. Do the right thing KEEP AWAY!!

Having several children at this school and the experience with all of the teachers at Avenue, I would not have my children anywhere else. We transferred/moved from a larger district nearby due to inappropriate behavior by students and staff alike that was not dealt with by the administration there. I feel secure in the fact that my children are with moral people throughout the day. The caring and individual attention that the teachers are able to provide due to the small school size has been amazing. I know my kids are in classrooms where behavior is not limiting the learning as well. There are small school politics of course and parents who have made flip-flops, capris, and parking lot issues a hill to die on. I think if they were to try out other public schools around they would see that the positives Avenue City has by far outweigh the negatives.
--Submitted by a parent

We moved to this district hearing such great things about the school. There is a sense of close knit as it is a small school. The families all seem to be very involved. The school however has not met our expectations. The teachers we have had so far have been good but we have been less than impressed with the leadership at the school. We believe that excellence starts at the top and directly affects the staff and students attending the school. I have never been to a school where the leadership would feel it is okay to wear camouflage capri pants, flip flops or ripped jeans to school. We have been a little bit shocked about what seems to be acceptable as our experience in other schools has been much more professional and respectable. There are very few extra curricular activities as well.
--Submitted by a parent

A friend of mine has been consistently asking me to write a review about our school especially since our children have attended other educational facilities. I do not know all the teachers well enough to rate them, but the ones my children have are average or good. There are few extra curriculars, but sometimes that's okay at the elementary age. I have met some fantastic families. Now for the other side. I would have to agree that leadership quality is not as high as we have experienced in other schools. The environment is not as welcoming as would be expected and we do not always feel that everything is communicated to us, or if it is, it is not done in a professional manner. Overall, the school is just okay. Would I recommend this school?. . . Based on our experiences with other schools, probably not.
--Submitted by a parent

I hear complaints and I hear wonderful things about our school. The good outweighs the bad. The school has high standards for achievement. Parents are involved with their childrens education. The administration disciplines effectively and does all they can to keep our children safe. Our teachers are some of the best. Sports is good but we are so small in numbers. That's not a bad thing. I would rate this school to be in the top of all Missouri schools.
--Submitted by a parent

ACES is an outstanding K-8 school, lead by an intelligent, caring & professional staff and principal. The annual superior MAP scores demonstrates the students commitment and staff dedication to academic excellence. The pricipal, as well as all staff, is fully accountable to a publicly elected Board of Education and is very open and responsive to numerous & divers parent/student requests. As with all small schools, ACES is challenged with fielding & cultivating team sports, i.e., 7 & 8th grades together have 5 boys, but they field what they can. The important and bottom line is: ACES provides a safe and excellent education to its students, one that fully prepares them for high school. Just call the local HS principals and councelors and ask them yourself.
--Submitted by a parent