W L Henry Elementary School

I sent 2 kids here for 5 years, to allow my children to be in the dual language immersion program. I'm very pleased that my children have been able to learn a second language in childhood, they sound like native spanish speakers. This school definitely has some struggles, but it's not due to teachers not trying! There are some absolutely fantastic teachers here, and they accommodated my children's abilities and tried to find ways to challenge them. I really appreciated their positive behavior reward system, which encouraged appropriate behavior with certain rewards. However, as the kids got older, the behavior issues got more and more pronounced, to the point where it was extremely distracting and took a lot of the teachers' time. My eldest child just finished 6th grade here, but my younger child won't be returning. Also, there's not a lot of support from home, and very little parent involvement in the classroom and school. There's been a lot of principal turn over lately. In a nutshell, I'd say that if you're interested in your child learning a language, this is a good option for the younger elementary years, but I'd suggest going elsewhere after around 4th grade.
—Submitted by a parent

WL Henry is on the less desirable side of town and has to deal appropriately with troubled kids. I have thought several times about homeschooling or transfering, but there is a balance. My son has had extremely good teachers since kinder and has gotten citizenship awards for standing up for what's right, and lots of positive reinforcement. His mental abilities and grades are not determined by those who struggle, or the averaging of school scores. The teachers teach what they are given to teach. A lot of the grade depends on the determination of the child.
—Submitted by a parent

I have found the diversity within the school to be refreshing. My child is in the Dual-Language Program and I am grateful for her to have the opportunity to learn another language at such an impressionable age. This school could use much more volunteer time that what it currently sees.
—Submitted by a parent

This School caters to one paticular culture and the outcome of that has caused a level of education to be way, way below the average quality of teaching and learning for the average American student of any other school in the area. Because of this I have personaly choosen to Homeschool my children to give them the 'Best'. And also because this school won't release students to attend other schools in the area, for the reason, they have to meet Their Quota of American Students that attend this school, so it causes us parents to be forced into other options. We have been in this district for 11 years and the school has incressingly gotten worse!
—Submitted by a parent