Oakland Elementary School

This is my child's last year at the school and it has been the worst year ever!!! My child had THREE teachers in the third grade. The first teacher passed away and she was great. The second teacher was there for three months and then was let go because she did not have a teaching license!!!! So they eventually had another teacher in the school fill in for the rest of the school year. When we question about this second teacher, we did not get a straight answer and the principal blamed the school board for hiring her. The principal did not acknowledge any responsibility for this HUGE mistake. As a principal, she should know who is working in her school and if they are fully qualified for the job, regardless if the hiring process is done at the school board. We think the school would be so much better if it was under better leadership. This school has a high turnover of principals!!! We have seen THREE principals in THREE years that my child has attended the school. We gave the school two stars because there are some faculty members that do care about the kids and do the best with the little resources that they have.
—Submitted by a parent

The school should be taken over by the state. I agree with the previous review. I would not send my dog here.One of the biggest issues i had with this school was they have NO organization.You can't get a straight answer about anything from anyone. To me it's like something you'd see in another country..yes that awful.Sad Oakland can't do any better than this.If you move to Oakland you better bank on having to send them to private.
—Submitted by a parent

I had 4 children attend here. My children were harassed, bullied, taunted by both teachers and kids. My children did not learn to read at school. They learned to write backwards and I have yet to be able to re-teach them. They make their letters from bottom to top instead of top to bottom. Those ingrained lessons stay forever. We homeschool now and some things cannot be undone. I am so sorry I sent any of my children to this school. The deficiencies are tremendous. Their self-esteem was so injured that they cannot even go out in public. They used to be so outgoing. I hate this school. BTW, I attended here too. It was just as bad then. Few improvements were made.
—Submitted by a parent

Oakland Elemetary is a joke for the most part. We have had 3 principles in the past 3 years. Trying to pick up your kid takes 30 minutes AT BEST, you might get a teacher who actually cares about your child's education and there are not very many things for the kids (fun wise). I have 3 boys who have gone to this school and it has yet to get better. One of the Kindergarten teacher just does not care about the kids. There are good teachers there, which is the only reason I gave it 2 stars... In our experiences K- Ms. Carey and Ms. Prewit= GREAT! 1st- Ms.Mosby 110% GREAT!!! 2nd- Ms.Calvin= WONDERFUL 3rd- Ms. Gilreath=AWESOME All of the teachers above have gone above and beyond a teachers duties for my kids and some of my friends kids. HOPE that you get one of them. As far as our "now" principle, she is very nice, attentive to the parents needs, and really seems to care about the kids education.

There need to be more consistency. You can not have a new principle every year. The maintenance at this school sucks. Pothols in the driveway the last couple of years still not fixed.
—Submitted by a parent

We were very fortunate that our dughter got great teachers the 1st and 2nd grade. It is not good to have a new principal every year. I was fortunate that I was in a school abroad. In 10 years they had the same principal. The school had tennis courts, swimming pool and rugby field. I can only hope and prey that she get a good third year teacher. My wife said the registration at this school is a nightmare
—Submitted by a parent

We have had our child in the school since kindergarten and are now in the 2nd grade. During this time, the school has had 3 female principles in 3 years. Pretty high turn over if you ask me. The teachers we've had have been mixed. -In Kindergarten, we had Mrs Bullock, who was great. -First grade was Mrs Powell, who, personally was a nice & cordial person but didn't set the bar for performance like would have liked. -Second grade we now have Mrs Willadsen. Again, it doesn't seem like the bar for excellence is there. She doesn't correct the homework so we're not sure if we're supposed to return it or keep it. The before/after school care has been pathetic. There are ladies who watch the kids only to badger them for what they do wrong. They sit in their chairs and nag the kids. They are indifferent about organizing something meaningful for the children. Overall, we've been satisfied with the school. We give it 3 stars. We're looking at a private school since we would like to raise the bar on academic excellence. Unfortunately, you won't find the same the leadership. Finally: The organization of the school has been pretty poor. It seems that the new principle is better this year.
—Submitted by a parent

I have had nothing but problems with the Oakland school system. The principal is a joke, and has no communication with the parents. They do have some good teachers. If you child has no other option just pray that you get one of the good ones!
—Submitted by a parent

I have a 3rd grader and a kindergartener that goes to OES. The only thing I DO NOT like is the principal. She has no time for the parents. My child got hurt there and I called several times and left messages for her to call me and sent e mail and NEVER got a response. Finally my husband and I went up there one morning and just walked in and told the office staff we wanted to meet with Mrs.Colbeck. When we got in there I told her I had left her several messages and had never received a call back and she said " she has been busy" that was unacceptable to my husband and I. She is the PRINCIPAL, she is suppose to be available and return calls to parents. She is a huge asset at the school and she needs to act like it and do her job!! If she can't handle it then she needs to move on. Other then that I LOVE the school so far both childrens teachers are WONDERFUL and really care about my children and that makes me very happy!!!
—Submitted by a parent

If I had a dog I wouldn't send it to this school. I had to take my child out of the school. No one even cared to know why we no longer wanted to attend. The principal would not talk to me about it and the assistant principal was just too busy to see me. I was very shocked that the school had such a lack of security for the children and that they felt the didn't owe me an explanation at all.
—Submitted by a parent

My Daughter just started Kindergarden at OES and we love it there. Everyone we met has been friendly and very helpful. Ms. Kelley the Principal is impressive. She has good command over her school and seems to have the respect of the teachers and parents.
—Submitted by a parent

Don't send your kid here if you can help it.
—Submitted by a parent

Well there is a lot to say about this school. I will start off with the one good thing. My son had an excellent teacher his first year. But that's the only good thing. The principal is horrible. She is so rude to not only the kids but also the staff and parents. They do not give you very important information you need. Like when school starts, what teacher your child will have and so on. My son starts back this Thursday and I have no clue what teacher he will have or what time he should be there for that matter. The parking is horrible. They are screwed up in so many ways it's unreal. I think maybe they should find a new principle who can make imporvements not one worried about her appearance.
—Submitted by a parent

We've had one year here and I loved my daughters teacher. The school overall needs a lot of clean up and painting, it is an elementary school, make it kid friendly. They need to get organized and ask for more parents participation.
—Submitted by a parent

Very far behind shelby county schools. They seem to have a big issue with the no kids left behind and teach to the bottom end of the class and leave the upper end to their own. Very poor school.
—Submitted by a parent

So far this school is great! My son has learned more in 4 months here than he did in private school! The only thing that bothers me is that there is not any orginization! Everything is chaos!
—Submitted by a parent

Some teacher can not spell which worries me. The building needs some major refurbishing and the lunch menu is horrible.
—Submitted by a parent

My child has gone to this school for 2 years and it has never seemed to get any better.Although there is a new principal this year and he is trying to make things better. As far as the extracurricular activities they are really lacking. As for the rest there are 'some' really good teachers.This web site said that there are only about 600 kids there...well that is way off.It's closer to 900.If you get a good teacher it can be really good.
—Submitted by a parent

OES has many truly dedicated teachers. They are hard-working and determinted to give the students the best education they can in spite of much adversity in the system. The recent budget cuts and overcrowding have had a strong impact on the quality of education at the school. The enrichment teachers are great, but are stretched to the limit of their resources. The PTO has done a good job of trying to fill in the gaps and help the teachers have what they need for the students, but more parent involvement could make a tremendous difference for the school. I can't praise the teachers enough!
—Submitted by a parent

The school seems to be on track as far as the lessons. Some teachers are in need of organizational skills. Overall the teachers are caring and concerned about the children and their education. Extracurricular acctivities are starting to improve. However, unless your child is at least in the forth grade he/she will be very very limited on the activities. Outside sources of activities is your only option for K-3. Many parents are involved but not as many as there should be. The PTO needs much improvement. The school is overcrowded. The City of Oakland and its Mayor should be coming together and planning on building an Elementary School and a High School. Until a local High School is provided, parents have two other alternatives: Home School or Private School. The students have to commute to Somerville by bus or parent to go to the nearest high school.
—Submitted by a parent