Lakeland Hills Elementary School

Our child has been attending LHE for 3 years. The Principal is great with the kids, he always gives them a smile, knows them by name, greets them in the morning and is there to help when needed. He also has monthly lunches with Wildcat Wow winners which is a reward program for responsible students and the kids love it. He is very active in making sure our students meet the states standards in reading and math and has implemented helpful programs,he gets an A+. TEACHERS; most are great with a few that should retire as they can't seem to grasp the concept of positive reinforcement or redirecting . There is the problem of some teachers favoring students whose parents teach at the school and that needs to stop. They have to many substitute teachers coming in and they are generally awful so beware. The PTA needs a revamp and a strong leader that focuses on what s best for the kids not brown nosing teachers. Teachers get paid for what they do and plenty of time off so let s stop with the lunches and sunshine gifts and use those funds to help a needy child. Stay involved, speak up for your child and if your child has special needs see the counselor, she will help.
—Submitted by a parent

Lakeland Hills first does no harm. Let me start with that testimonial. We've enjoyed our three years at the school. I'm not blown away by the school's performance. I felt like my child could've been challenged more. Our second grade teacher Mrs. Swanson was an example of their best and brightest. Our current teacher is solid much like the overall experience at the school. It is a school that will protect and nurture your child. Our child enjoyed her time there. The school has done a good job building her fundamentals. I'd like to see more diversity amongst the teaching staff.
—Submitted by a parent

LHE, is mediocre at best. The Principals main concern is district rankings. He seems too busy to talk and never helps come up with solid solutions for children in need. Some of the teachers are wonderful and really care about the children yet there are others that should never work with young children as they are rude, indifferent and yell. If your child has special needs like ASPERGERS, then good luck to you, you will be told that they will help you however they are simply blowing smoke up your skirt as none of the teachers seem to have any experience in working with children that have disabilities and actually punish them in class instead of redirecting their behavior and giving positive reinforcement. There are too many substitute teachers, and the subs are of course clueless and terribly rude to the kids, one even grabbed my child's arm for not standing still in line. Lakeland Is NOT upper middle class it is middle class at best with low brow mentality thrown in. The PTA is pushy and guilt's the kids into buying junk for Christmas by sending flyer upon flyer. The parents are very cliquey so don't bother trying to fit in. We look forward to moving and changing districts.
—Submitted by a parent

Do keep in mind when reading the negative reviews, this school mostly draws from an upper middle class area i.e. demanding. We moved here and are delighted with the Principal, all three of our kids' teachers, the homework load and activities and so much more. Our children were behind when we moved here and are now at grade level in all subjects or above, due to fantastic, caring teachers and volunteers. The Principal is out at the drop-off loop most mornings, greeting children and parents as the day starts. He's at EVERY school event, including the evening ones, responds to every email and knows every kid by name. Our three children are very different from each other in every way and yet each loves school, has learned to enjoy the process of learning (for the most part!), and has been enriched by the field trips, projects and experiences their teachers have made possible. Our last school district told us to send our kids to Sylvan to 'catch-them-up'. Lakeland 'caught-them-up' for us and showed us how to be a part of that process as well. This school is the largest elem. school in Auburn, btw. Your child's class will be large.
—Submitted by a parent

We were so disappointed with the principal and some of the teachers that we moved to be in a better school district. We had three kids in Lakeland. Some of the teachers and staff were absolutely wonderful. However, others were dreadful and the principal was not interested in working on solutions at all. Our overall impression was that this was a school without coherent leadership. The student experience was happenstance depending upon what teacher they received.
—Submitted by a parent

Hopefully, your children will be able to hopscotch through Lakeland without a problem. Because when there is one, the principal is utterly ineffective at dealing with bad teachers. While there are many wonderful teachers and staff at Lakeland Hills, there are also those who seem to take little care with their behavior toward students. Children should never end up as discouraged and upset about school as mine did.
—Submitted by a parent

My daughter has been attending Lakeland Hills for three years. Her teachers have been fantastic - extremely skilled, patient, and able to handle her special learning needs. The principal is involved and focused on student learning. He inspires a fantastic sense of community. The PTA offers wonderful, relevant programs and supports the school's above average drama and music program. I am an educator myself (in a different district), and I couldn't be more impressed with Lakeland Hills!
—Submitted by a parent

So far I am pretty happy with this school. The teacher seem really great. One complaint I have is the class size....last year's first grade class started at 27..a little much for one teacher to handle...But by the end of the year the class was 23, much more reasonable. The security could be better like stated below. Also, no art classes, but not such a problem for elementary.
—Submitted by a parent

I have been impressed, thus far, with Lakeland Hills Elementary. While I would agree with several comments regarding the need for additional security measures (mainly, making sure everyone has to check in through the front office and locking down the exterior doors), I think it's an easy fix. I'm very happy with the staff that I've met. The one complaint I would have is that there were a number of notices we were given for events which really didn't allow for us to adjust our schedules. That's pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, though. Look forward to a new school year in September as does my child.
—Submitted by a parent

Overall, I'm satisfied with Lakeland Hills. I was really happy with last years' teacher, but not so much with this years. I'm sure there's good and not-so-good teachers within every school. However, one of the thing that concerns me the most is the open style campus. Public can get onto the school grounds freely & walk the halls without being noticed as you don't have to enter the inside halls through the office. Greatly lacking security. Principal is awesome.
—Submitted by a parent

We've been very satisfied until this year. This year our son's teacher was not proactive, unorganized, and just not helpful. We were unable to move our son into another class and our son is finally improving after enrolling him in Sylvan Learning Center, which is not cheap.
—Submitted by a parent

Very disappointed in one of the staff!!! My son's teacher discouraged my son so much that he doesn't want to go to school anymore. Every morning he asks me if he can move to a different school. My son is an A student and was even advised from a private school teacher to take a gate test before. Now, he just lost all his self-esteem and doesn't want to be in class. We are VERY frustrated.... We are planning to move to a better district soon.
—Submitted by a parent

Somethings I like. However, I feel that people can easily walk in to the school without being asked questions. I'm a parent and my kids attend there and I've never signed in and no one has question me to make sure i belong on the campus. I also feel the kids need more homework that is challenging.
—Submitted by a parent

Lakeland Hills is a great school. Teachers are excellent, the principal is great leader, PTA is active and so friendly. The kids are getting a great education in a creative and challenging environment. Even though the classes are huge (especially for a 2nd year school), the education does not suffer.
—Submitted by a parent

We had the most wonderful kindergarten experience we could have hoped for. Teacher was extraordinary and made our first exposure to the publc school system an extremelly positive one. This year has started out the same, great teacher, great facilities, great principal. A+++
—Submitted by a parent

Very disappointed. Kindergarten class lacks enthusiasm and creativity. Was more like daycare. Learning was limited because of class size & half-day program. Curriculum was repetitive and unimaginative. My child brought home some very bad habits, behavior and language that was learned at school. She was repeatedly hit and shoved by another little girl and each time the same action was taken. The other girl got a time out. When my child comes home with bruises that were intentionally caused by a bully girl (other children had the same problem with the same girl) I expect that more aggressive action should be taken to stop the behavior. Overall I was very unhappy, as was my child. We are looking into other schooling options to avoid another year at Lakeland Hills. Possibly even moving to find better education.
—Submitted by J R, a parent

We are super impressed by the quality of education our kids are getting at Lakeland Hills. Excellent and talented staff! The drop off procedure could be improved, but being a new school, I'm sure that it will get the bugs worked out next year.
—Submitted by Tawni Coronado, a parent

I have seen a big difference & improvement. with my child's education,& self esteem/confidence. School was always a problem in the past. He has special needs. He was a student that slipped through the cracks. He was so miserable and disliked school. Now that he transferred. I have no more worries. I know my son's special needs are being met, above and beyond my expectations! He has the best teachers and staff. I feel that he benefits from this support. I know he will reach new heights. I finally feel that he has a bright future with all the special help he is receiving. The possibilities are endless. I use to be hopeless. Now I am very hopeful for my son's education. We (the school & I) have the same goals for my child. My child will succeed! Thanks Lakeland Hills Elementary School, Way to go. Your #1 !
—Submitted by Catherine W., a parent