East Montgomery Elementary School

In 1st grade started they had a substitute fill in for our daughter's teacher for the year because the teacher was on leave. The sub had never taught in TN before. We started having problems almost immediately. Our daughter came home with red marks on her arms saying the teacher grabbed her and hurt her. We contacted the teacher who denied it. Our daughter kept coming home saying the teacher grabbed her, snatched her arms, etc. I went to the school and left a note for the principal. The principal never contacted me. I called every couple of days and left voicemails for two weeks. Finally, I asked for a note to be hand delivered, since her voicemail MUST have been broken. They did nothing. Denied any wrong doing and refused to move our daughter to another class. This went on from late August until two days before Christmas break! They kept saying they were looking into it, and did nothing. Finally, we went to the police dept and filed a report. Our daughter was moved to another class the next day. We got two phone calls from other parents who had the same issues. They wanted to know how we got our daughter out. This school is terrible if you ever get a bad teacher!
—Submitted by a parent

My child is ADHD ,last year third grade teacher nightmare for my family , I was exhausted and annoyed . With time I realize that they had very little time for new teacher training . My child was assigned a new teacher with no experience ,he was constantly in trouble ,I was weekly at the school arguing with the teacher and the administration , his grades and confidence were declining daily ,I was giving up hope and faith ! At the end of the school year I was told by the assistant principal and the principal that they will make sure that the following year I will get a teacher who will be highly experience and will understand the needs of my child ,to not worry ! everything will be perfect !!! Yeah right ! ( I thought ) , to my surprise , I was wrong ! my child was assigned a awesome teacher ( Mrs Beck) !! this year has been heaven , no trouble ,no going back and forth to the principal office ,no detention , oh and did I mention grade back up ,confidence to the top . So my advice will be to be patient with the school to give them time to analyze what his needs are and which teacher will fit your child best for the next year .
—Submitted by a parent

While last year was my children's first year at EMES, I was impressed with the quality of leadership from the principal. My daughter's teacher was good. My son's teacher needs some help. But the biggest problem is unruly children that reduce the quality of education by taking more of the teacher's time.
—Submitted by a parent

L have had 3 children at emes and l love it.Most of the teachers are great and are always willing to go that extra mile to help if there is a problem.My 3rd child just finished 5th grade and we will miss really the school go tigers!!!!!
—Submitted by a parent

I have a child in kindergarten and he has been diagnose with ADHD and the school has been great as far as helping us with his behavior we have a checklist and if he get so many stickers for being good he can get a reward at the end of the week. We have our ups and down. If anyone can give me some tips I'm listening. I do like the school so far.
—Submitted by a parent

I have 3 children enrolled at this school and feel that the teachers that we have encountered have been very welcoming, warm and caring teachers. When we moved here 2 years ago, my oldest daughter was behind because of the school in which she was enrolled (in Rhode Island). She struggled at first but her teacher was able to catch her up and she is excelling now. Where she strongly disliked school before, she now loves school. My second daughter has had wonderful teachers in first and second grade and my son is truly enjoying his kindergarten experience. I believe the school works hard to incorporate parents and generally is a wonderful school. I also wish they pushed individual reading a little more, but otherwise they have great tutoring programs available. Definitely one of the best (of 4) schools in which my children have been enrolled. I highly recommend this school.
—Submitted by a parent

I have had a child at this school for 4 years now and generally like the school. I knew my daughter had ADD in Kindergarten, but they could not test her until 1st grade. then it took them over a year to get their act together and by that time she had failed 1st grade so she had do take it over. She is doing better now, and understand the process of identifying a child with a disability, but I did my part as a parent and had to call and cal and call to get things done. As with any school some teachers are better than others and it is the luck of the draw.
—Submitted by a parent

this school is all about show, they have the attitude that any child with a disability should be kept in a contained classroom. they do nothing to help the child adapt to a general education class. if you have a child with special needs do not send them to this school. this school needs a reality check in the worst kind of way.
—Submitted by a parent

I have experienced 2nd-4th grade at EMES. The teachers give 100% effort and encouragement. The teachers that my children have had enable them to excel. I do wish that individual reading was pushed more. Ms. Hackney, though a fine principal, is not concise when speaking but does speak from the heart and has a love of children. We are a growing school but the atmosphere inside is warm and loving. I hope anyone relocating to the Clarksville area will choose East Montgomery as their school.
—Submitted by Julie, a parent

I am rating the teacher quality low based on the 1 teacher my child has had at this school. We have all of these Benchmark tests, yet nothing is done if the child falls below proficiency. I am disappointed in the teacher and the principal for not having plans in place. This particular teacher is condescending toward the children and does not take them out for recess because she doesn't like to be outside herself. I have heard her myself. Everyone else I have come in contact w/ at the school has been wonderful. Great parent involvement, very friendly.
—Submitted by a parent

We love East Montgomery! Our daughter is in first grade and we have been very impressed with both her Kindergarten and first grade teachers. She was recently diagnosed as having ADHD and I must say that her teacher has been very supportive, caring, and understanding. She genuinely seems to want to see my daughter succeed. The atmosphere is very warm and welcoming and they encourage parents to volunteer. We will be leaving EMES at the end of this year due to a move and I can only hope that her next elementary school is as wonderful as EMES.
—Submitted by a parent

As a child I went to East Montgomery and loved it. My child started out in another local elementary school and she done okay but since she has been at East Montgomery her grades have dramatically improved and she loves going to school now.
—Submitted by a parent

A good bunch of parents make this school a good place for kids to learn. Teachers do not have to worry about copying, laminating, or cuting and things like that as the parents handle it. This makes the teachers happier and with more time to teach.
—Submitted by a parent

I completely love this school. My daughter entered the first grade here. We came from Kansas, and when we got here, she was only in the beginning stages of 'key words'. Where here in Tennessee, the students were already suppose to know how to read. Long story short, now my daughter reads. They push there kids. I am so pleased. I love what this school does for my daughter. They set high standards, and with that our kids will excel. Thank you so much for being such a wonderful school.
—Submitted by a parent

In response to the derogatroy comment on March 2005, I disagree. Have you ever eaten lunch with your child? Students are not restricted from talking in the cafeteria. The traffic light on the wall goes from green to yellow when the noise level is too high. The children are given a verbal warning that if it changes to red they will have to sit quietly for a few minutes. What is wrong with that? As for volunteering, I am there every Friday, in my child's 'pod' classroom. The teacher and principle are extremely supportive of volunteering and encourage every parent to volunteer. Has March 2005 ever eaten lunch with her child or asked to volunteer? Is this just an unhappy person that is never satisfied? EMES has exceeded all of my expectations and I am thoroughly pleased. I volunteer weekly and encourage all parents to do the same, as does EMES.
—Submitted by a parent

I can't stand this school, they want the kids to act like little adults. there not allowed to talk at lunch, and they cannot chose whom to sit next to. I look at kids having two outlets in ther way too long of school day lunch and recess to express themselves, they do not get that at lunch and they only get one recess a day if the teacher takes them out. They also have the pod class rooms which limit parent involment so not to disrupt the other classes. The PTO is joke, they do not have open forums to discuss issues that parents might have. I have talked with the principal a few times about the same issue and each time she gives me the same response 'This is the first I was ever aware of this' followed by 'it's not a complaint until it's in writting'.
—Submitted by a parent

Ms. Hackney is a wonderful principal. Our teachers put in a lot of extra time after hours to help the kids. (eg. free tutoring before and after school)