St. Michael's Catholic School

I have to admit, I'm completely horrified to see the nasty review below. I have two children at SMCS and am SO SO glad I chose this wonderful place for my children's education! To say that an entire grade is a waste is peculiar to me..I found the K teacher to be very stern, but also very loving to my children. She does expect the children to behave, but isn't that WHY we choose a private Catholic education?! I WANTED my children to be a part of a disciplined environment! Oh, don't worry--they do amazingly fun activities as well. I'm so impressed with how the teachers manage to wrap the entire days lessons together and bring it right home for the kids. The first grade teacher was A_MAZ_ING and I cannot believe anybody would think otherwise! I always found the teachers very willing to listen to me AND make appropriate changes when necessary. I never encountered an unwelcoming face and my kids LOVE it there. They cannot imagine being elsewhere and I always get compliments on their good manners &well-roundedness. I LOVE the principal...end of story--he won Principal of the year for a reason (city of Gastonia). Please, don't let sour grapes affect your decision to consider SMCS!
--Submitted by a parent

I am so proud to have my children at this school, receiving a top notch, CATHOLIC education. They love the teachers and principal (in all grades) and I can tell they are being nurtured. They are excited to learn about traditional subjects as well as intricacies of the Faith. A++ SMCS, keep up the good work!
--Submitted by a parent

I love St. Michael's Catholic School. I wanted Faith-Based education and that is what I am getting. The education is fantastic and I know my daughters are learning more than the local public school kids are. The environment is exactly what I expect from a Catholic School. I guarantee that we are not of the rich crowd, but I haven't encountered any problems from any of the parents or students treating my children inappropriately. I look forward to all of my children having the opportunity to have Kindergarten thru 8th grade education at St. Michael's.
--Submitted by a parent

Before sending your child to SMCS, do your research, tour, etc..... I encountered many issues with teachers. SMCS is very settled, all teachers are in a comfort zone that they will NEVER get out of. They do not like to use e-mail, very few use smartboards, etc.... Technology is not a priority at SMCS. Grades 1st, 3rd, and 5th is a waste of money. Class sizes are beginning to be big in many grade levels, worse than a public school. The principal is very nice, but also very setteled. Nothing gets changed or even an intent to change negatives to positives, NEVER happens. He is very settled as well. The school needs new teachers and a new principal. There are a lot of changes that need to be made. The school needs new active teachers that teach and also make learning fun. Please, as a parent make sure of your decisions before sending your children to SMCS. We have had to move our kids from SMCS because of large class size and lack of teaching.
--Submitted by a parent

Wonderful The principal is very welcoming and wonderful. The education my sons are receiving is phenominal and above what the public schools are teaching at the same grade level. My boys attend Mass weekly and have computer, foreign language, art, and music in their weekly schedule. I high recommend St. Michael for your children!
--Submitted by a parent

We are not happy with this school at all. I am so happy to have found this site. We too, had a negative experience in the very beginning and found we needed to seek another school because of the differences with a teacher. Not welcoming. Principal is nice, but the teacher was awful. :o(
--Submitted by a parent

We are very happy with SMCS. This is our second year and we have two boys going there. SMCS provides a safe, sound education and holds kids to high expectations. The families are very welcoming. My kids really like it and feel proud to be there.
--Submitted by a parent

Fantastic school, fantastic teachers and fantastic support from all faculity members.
--Submitted by a parent

kids are friends at school but if you are not rich and country clum materal then your kids don,t interact with each other from school. the rich parents don,t want the kids around the not so rich kids.
--Submitted by a parent

When I moved to Gastonia - there was never a question where my children were going to go to school. St. Michael is wonderful- even though it is limited in some of the area of class offerering for older children; it is still well spent money! THe teachers are dedicated and the school is full of positive actions!
--Submitted by Monica Henson, a parent