Beacon Heights School

The teachers are very dedicated, even though there are only 15 teachers in the entire building. Classes are around 30+, even in the lower grades and in our experience it puts the teacher into an overworked position and lowers the quality of delivery. That's not the teacher's fault. It's administration at the District and School levels. While I do not have experience at the District level, I have relatively extensive experience with the Principal because I am a very strong advocate for my child. This principal is "rules and guidebook" oriented. When my child was late 3 times unexcused (my fault, when I came in with my child 10 minutes late, I told the truth - we got into a traffic jam. I won't make that mistake again.) Because our family had to temporarily move from the District because our house in the District (still under contract) was asbestos and black mold infested, we were told we had to remove ourselves from the school a la Section G. I wasn't shown the section, but you can be sure we won't go back or recommend this school to anyone. BTW, the school claims it is an "arts campus", however there is no active arts program. The award was a few years' prior.
—Submitted by a parent

At first I thought that Beacon Heights would b a great school but the teacher my son had for first grade was terrible. My son would finish his work early and then she would not give him anything else to do. So he would disrupt the class. When I asked her to increase his work load she said she could not do that, but offered no advise except to tell us we should check on some medication for him. Having another son who does have ADHD, I know the warning signs and our older son does not have them. He's just bright and need to be challenged a bit. And also this next year they are planning on having only 2 fourth grade teachers and 2 fifth grade teachers, with a floater teacher to teach half day fourth and half day fifth. So for half of the day your kids would have more that 30 students in the classroom. The principle said they don't have funding for another teacher. But how are kids supposed to learn with that many kids in the class.
—Submitted by a parent

Parents need to know that this school may not be safe for their child. My first-grader is bright and likes to explore. He has been found several times in the front parking lot (the children are able to wander there during recess). No fence or barrier prevents this. On several occasions he has walked out the door and left the school entirely. One morning a volunteer found him in a stairwell; he had been there for some time, crying. The volunteer walked him to class. The teacher said she hadn't realized my son was at school at all-- even though she had lined him up and walked him into the school that morning. I have approached her about these (and other) concerns; I am told that she has 27 kids and she can only do so much. I sympathize with her, but the lack of supervision at this school borders on negligence.
—Submitted by a parent

We were impressed with the level of instruction that our child received at Beacon Heights. I know that everyone's experience will be different with other teachers but we appreciated the extra effort our child's teacher put forth to challenge her. Overall the parents and staff we encountered here were involved individuals who were sincerely concerned about a quality education.
—Submitted by a parent

Academics at Beacon are in the top 10% for the state. There's more religious diversity than at most of the other nice schools on Salt Lake's east bench. My girls started at private religious school but switched to Beacon after we discovered that they wouldn't be minority students just because we're not part of Utah's dominant religion. The teachers are very helpful and caring. There's a lot of parent involvement. It's a wonderful school.
—Submitted by a parent

Beacon Heights is a wonderful school! When we moved to Salt Lake from out of state my husband visited many schools and talked to many principals to decided where to send our 2 children. Beacon rose to the top and we've been happy with our decision to send our kids here. The teachers are wonderful and the parent community is very involved and supportive. There is a great art and music program. Many families from out of district have heard how great Beacon Heights is and drive from across the valley to send their kids here. I would highly recommend this school.
—Submitted by a parent