Pine Lake Preparatory

My children attend Pine Lake and I am very disappointed with the leadership and quality of education of the High School. My children will be moving to another school with a significant disadvantage due to the weak curriculum at the high school and the inexperienced staff. While there are some very strong teachers at the school they make up a small percentage of the overall staff. Concerns when raised are not addressed and brushed off as not important. The children must teach themselves key concepts and it is not a supportive environment that prepares them for college and beyond. It is sad to see such a great concept ruined by lack of leadership, vision and operational experience. I would not recommend this high school to any prospective family. Much restructuring and change has to happen for this to truly be a college prep school.
—Submitted by a parent

My children attended PLP and I was thoroughly disappointed with the quality of the education. Students are expected to teach themselves. Five hours of homework is normal. The teacher turnover is tremendous; few last more than a year. The senior pride project is required for graduation and adds an obscene amount of additional work to students with no time for anything other than studying. The 40 volunteer hours each year are required and the school uses the children as free labor by offering them "volunteer hours". I was also frightened by some of the things being taught. My child mentioned that his teacher had said he had used LSD in college and had found it enlightening. The teachers double as guidance counselors and told my junior with a 3.5 GPA that they really had no hope of attending a good college and should concentrate on a community college. Raising money is the main focus of everyone at this school and most time is geared to fundraising. The uniforms are expensive ($250 each student minimum) and are required. Dress code is strictly enforced and children are made to pick up trash if they fail to comply. There are so many good schools in our area; skip this one!
—Submitted by a parent

The academics are clearly problematic but the school is new and is experiencing growing pains. A change of attitude is critical. The leadership must understand that the environment needs to be more open, this school cannot succeed if it continues to be run as a dictatorship. I believe the parents would be much more active in the school were they encouraged to participate rather than simply asked to donate money all the time. The teacher quality would improve if emphasis was placed on keeping good staff in place rather than constantly replacing the staff with less experienced personnel. It is unacceptable that this school does not have qualified teachers in place, which is really the most important thing a parent looks for in any educational environment. This school is a place where few students stay for more than a year and those who leave are chastised as not being able to make the grade. Quite the contrary, those who leave recognize that they need to find an educational environment that prepares them for the future, not one that does not. I hope that the school will improve in time. I too look forward to the opening of additional charter schools in the Lake Norman area.
—Submitted by a parent

Looking forward to new Charter Schools opening in the Lake Norman area. Due to overcrowding at local public schools, the waitlist for the few area Charter's is long inc. Pine Lake. Pine Lake has made some strides in the right direction as in hiring a new Head of School. However, the poor leadership experienced over the last 5 years with respect to each school principal has remained the same. Halfway into the year, and we still have poor communication, teachers who are not qualified, refusal to listen to middle/high school parents concerns, and an inexperienced School Board who is reluctant to make necessary changes to improve. The new Head of School seems only to be concerned with not making waves with his staff. Most obvious is the K-5 elementary parents run this school. As a result, very little involvement from middle and high schools. High student turnover in 9-12 grades, after 6 yrs no one seems to care why, they just start calling the wait list to fill the vacant spots again and again. If you are entering as an employee to Pine Lake with children, you'll do fine. If you are entering with only K-5 children, you'll do fine. If you have a 6-12 grader, check your options.
—Submitted by a parent

Great for academics. Below average for sports. teachers are above average. My child is in the high school.
—Submitted by a parent

Mediocre. This school is average. Haven't been impressed, but it's not awful either. We'll stay for now but looking elsewhere.
—Submitted by a parent

Pine Lake is ok, if you are looking for low crime and that is it. Most of the teachers are not certified, which is a huge problem. I do worry that my children are not getting the education they need to go forward. The heads of each school spend more time on pettiness of which parents they do not like for one reason or another. Any time someone voices a concern, parents and staff say "if you don't like it, leave!" Not very open to new ideas or ways to improve. There is a cult like mentality in the lower school. It is you are either in or out. There's a new head of school, so I am hopeful. However, if he believes what the three heads of school are feeding him, then he will just be more of the same. Hopefully, he will have a backbone and stand up to them. At this time, I do not have a better option. I put in for Community School of Davidson each year hoping to get in.
—Submitted by a parent

We have not been happy at Pine Lake Prep. We were very excited to join PLP after being on websites like this one and going in under the assumption this was a community where we would be welcomed. That is not the case. Kindergarden was great (though didn't prepare our child for anything they were going to go through for the next school year). Then we went into 1st grade where we started to get the feeling that if you are average or have concerns about something you are not wanted. The moto for this school should be "maybe this school isn't for you" which is chorused from everyone from the teachers to the parents. When you have a concern or problem it is not handled at all. An I'm posting it here and not anywhere my name or my child's name is because I fear the repercussions from the other parents and teachers. Which has happened on more than one occasion. We have not moved the child out due to we are still holding out hope of getting them into another charter for next year. Sorry but this school is not worth the hype.
—Submitted by a parent

I am a freshman at PLP and this is my second year. I love it here and my teachers are amazing! I'm so grateful that I got in. This school is amazing and the kids are respectful and everyone feels accepted. I have made the greatest friends here and I am looking forward to spending my high school years here. (:

I am a parent of a 7th grader at Pine Lake. This is my childs second year & it is wonderful! The teachers are fantastic. The school is clean, the kids are respectful. The courses are hard & my son has to work for his grades. There are no buses & the car line is very long (the first 2 weeks of school=30 mins. or more) but it gets better & is well worth it for the education that ny child is getting. I have never spoken to a parent at Pine Lake that is unhappy witht he school. We as so happy that we made the lottery.
—Submitted by a parent

This school is amazing! I love it so much, I have no problem telling my parents what I had learned that day! The teachers are so nice, and I made the best friends ever at this school. I love how involved everybody is, PLP is where I belong, I'll never leave!!!

Great combination of committed families, excellent teachers, strong academics, sense of community and new facilities. Our robotics team just came back from the World Championships and a new athletic center is already being planned. PLP is a wonderful academic community.
—Submitted by a parent

Pine Lake Prep is a wonderful school with excellent missions & family values.My son has met many wonderful friends & enjoys the nurturing & caring atmosphere.
—Submitted by a parent

I have 3 children at PLP in grades 2nd, 5th and 7th. This is our 2nd year and it has been a great experience. They provide a challenging curriculum and safe environment at the school. It is big enough but a small atmosphere which is just what I wanted for the kids. They have accomplished so much in a short amount of time and will only get better. I am so thankful to have my children at PLP!
—Submitted by a parent

I now have 3 kids in grades K, 2, and 5 at PLP. My daughter moved there in 4th grade after attending what most would say a 'hard school' with 2-3 hours of homework each night just to keep up. She absolutely loves PLP and says the biggest difference to her is that the teachers teach better. She says when she has a question, they take the time to answer her rather than saying it's time to move on. The curriculum is better and we love that they teach spanish. My boys in grades K and 2 love PLP. This school has the perfect mixture of nurturing, preparing, leading, and engaging our future leaders into the real world! 'Grades and all' unlike some charters in our area. A rating of 'School of Distinction' after it's first year is fantastic.
—Submitted by a parent

I am not at all very pleased with this school. I wanted my child to attend Lake Norman Charter, but no luck getting in there. We got in at PLP and I was very pleased. However, that attitude had changed quite quickly for myself and my son. Teachers are very nice, but the schoolwork is not at all challenging as compared to other charter schools in the area. I feel like they will not be prepared at all. This is still a better choice then public school, but again I am hoping to get into LNCS next go round. Thank you for listening.
—Submitted by a parent

We really like the emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) and FIRST Robotics at PLP -across all the grade levels k-12. The afterschool robotics program teaches students soft skills of working within a team, planning, organizing, scheduling, and sharing. Also, the STEM and robotic's related fieldtrips bring relevence to the student's work in school. My daughter got her hands on a $1.5M DaVinnci robot a few months back at a local hospital and it changed her whole perception of STEM and robotics.
—Submitted by a parent

Great school, great teachers, great kids!
—Submitted by a parent

It starts w/ the staff, kids, the ommunity, the location, the grounds the everything!!!!!!
—Submitted by a parent

I love PLP because it has the largest family feel I know, not counting their extreme excellence in academics. They only have the best teachers and the curriculum itself tops the charts. Pine Lake Prep is the reason I love school and as a result, see a brighter future ahead of me.
—Submitted by a parent