St. Pius X Catholic School

St. Pius seems to be more concerned with the money than with the children. There is no appropriate place for the children who are in daycare to work on their homework afterschool. There is little or no supervisory help, they just put all the kids in one big room and let them go wild.
—Submitted by a parent

This school has growing pains. It is not a bad school but new ideas seem to be pushing public school ideas on to a Catholic school mentality,causing a lot of stress for both students and staff. The K thru 3rd grades are outstanding, with dedicated teachers. The rest of the grades one has to be really careful about which teacher your child gets. SPX has adopted the book The Essential '55' as its rule guide. It would be a good thing for a new parent to read this book before deciding if SPX is the right school for their child.
—Submitted by a parent

Good private school in East Dallas provides education in a traditional Catholic environment. Most teachers are great and very dedicated. Heavy parental involvement and student discipline are expected. Extracurricular activities include Chess Club and 'Destination Imagination'. Big on football and basketball, but no soccer team.
—Submitted by a parent

Teachers in the primary thru 6th grade are beyond fantastic. Imaginative, enthusiastic, and very, very positive. The best you will find anywhere. The 4th grade teachers are legendary. My children really loved their teachers and loved school... until lthey hit 7th grade. There seems to be a lot of turnover among the 7th and 8th grade teacher--except for a couple of the teachers you pray will leave, but don't. The school has a problem finding enlightened, helpful math and science teachers. I have been unimpressed and disappointed in the quality of the instruction in these areas in the 7th and 8th grade. The school has e-mail set up for each of the teachers, and for the most part it's a great way to stay attuned to what's going on. Most of the teachers are very good about responding, either by e-mail or by phone if the matter requires more extensive conversation. St. Pius also has web pages set up for the teachers so each one of them can post weekly what's coming up, what they're working on, so parents can stay on top of their child's schoolwork and homework. However, some teachers are really good about posting their week's agenda, others are really lax. This was new in the 2002-03 school year so maybe some teachers just are not comfortable yet. Maybe an edit from the principal and some decent training will get the less-web-inclined up to speed. This is a very useful too. All in all, St. Pius is the best school in this area--and the least expensive of all the private schools. I've sent 4 children thru the school (two have graduated, two are still there), and the graduates have done very well in high school (both in private high schools), except in math, where they tend to be behind the curve. So I know they are preparing the kids well. Just wish they could get their act together on the 7th & 8th grade math and science teachers. Parents are very involved in every facet. Volunteerism is very high on the list of priorities. Great group of people.
—Submitted by a parent