Mountain Park Elementary School

This is a very clique driven school. If you are on the 'It' list your child gets the best teachers. The Principal is very shallow in her treatment of Teachers and Staff and Parents. . . . Not a good culture of inclusion.

It truly saddens me to see how Mountain Park has deteriorated over the past few years. Like many others, our family moved to this district in large part because of the reputation and ranking of this school. We were enthusiastic and pleased with the education and general school environment the first few years. Unfortunately, Mountain Park has taken a major turn for the worse with palpable low morale among the teachers and an overt fixation on test scores. Since the school ranking dropped from 11th to 47th in the state (from 2012 to 2013), the "teaching to the test" mentality has become the primary focus. If you have a gifted child, this is NOT the right educational environment! The high performing kids aren't challenged or stimulated because they will excel on standardized tests regardless of how little attention they are afforded. This is a school that has peaked and is now declining.

Mountain Park elementary is an excellent school. My son had a great experience there. The school has wonderful teachers and great parent involvement.

To the parent who was unhappy and submitted in February 2013, the word "principal" is not spelled "principle," as you have indicated.

Now for the school rating: Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. We moved from Ohio, which was so wrapped up in unions, it wasn't about the students but having teachers keep their jobs. The teachers and administration at Mountain Park care deeply for the students. I will forever have Mountain Park in my heart for the special care and attention my son has received. He has Aspberger's and was tossed aside in kindergarten in Ohio just to protect a lazy, useless teacher who should have not had tenure. Going to an IEP meeting in Ohio was like meeting up with a group of Enron attorneys. At Mountain Park, I get positive words and feel compassion and empathy every step of the way.

My son has had better access to the classroom, loads of friends, and a very open minded parent and school body that embraces children of all types, from all parts of the country, and the world. We have found our entire experience so wonderfully positive. Mountain Park deserves all the praises and high rankings it receives. May it live on forever.

I see the Principal all of the time. She is very involved, at every school function. The parents volunteer at the school all of the time and are very involved and supportive. There is tons of communication. The environment is cozy, and my child loves learning. It has been a great experience for us.

I would not recommend this school to families that are looking for a school that encourages the love of learning. This school is designed for students that function well in a rigid, structured very controlling environment. Fifteen minutes of recess per day and an extensive list of student and parent rules. The communication out of the school is poor. The biggest kicker is that they do in fact have great resources, excellent test scores and are ranked high among good schools but they rob their students of the joy and fun of learning. In Roswell, Roswell North is a much better school and much less pretentious. The principle is rarely seen at Mountain Park. We've been attending for a year and my child has yet to meet the principle at all. The teachers are very poor in the upper grades and they have very little interest in student success. Test scores are priority #1 and fun in learning and character come second fiddle if they are paid attention to at all. We've truly not enjoyed our experience at all and have moved our children to another campus in Roswell.