Spring Lake Charter

RVCS was considered, "The", school to be in.
The children were giddy at the thought of having their own laptops, and the parents were excited, (and competitive), to have their children accepted.
Myself, and wife, were two of those people.
That is a very embarrassing admission in retrospect.
I will attempt to explain why that is, hopefully, in this posting.
This school has put itself on a pedestal, poorly imitating elite schools of larger cities, and exploiting the concern of loving parents.
There is the facade of a rigorous selection process, when in fact, most children that apply are accepted.
There is also an obvious, palpable, desire by the staff, to be viewed as though they are somehow superior to the teachers in the surrounding schools.
Unfortunately, this school is beyond a let down, and all smoke and mirrors.
The main appeal to the parents is obvious.
The thought of the small class sizes, intimate teacher to student ratios, take home laptops, with nurturing, creative staff, are just a few of the teasers the school exudes, but does not come close to providing.
The reality is that it deserves a reputation, but not the positive kind.
Class sizes are small, and initially that is a wonderful change! Until your children begin to realize that there is a difference between cozy small, and claustrophobic small.
The school does nothing to prepare students for the bustling schools that await them just around the proverbial corner.
They are not exposed to lockers, (using "cubbyholes" as they did in kindergarten.), they are enclosed in approximately three small single wades, and share the same teachers for almost every class, I., your child might have the same teacher for almost every class, everyday. (forget about a specialized teaching pool here, your child will most likely learn math from his PE teacher, who also will be the same teacher that they have for English, etc.)
Teachers are often under educated, in any subject but the one they were specifically geared for.
The much touted laptops are a disgrace.
Most are so severely abused, by the time your child receives them, they either cannot hold a charge, have broken screens, are scratched, cracked, marked, missing keys, and have software that routinely self deletes assignments.
This is also accompanied by a, $1,000.00 dollar, "insurance fee" to be put up by the parents.
This is not mandated of course, but heavily pushed under the threat of the parent having to pay the same amount in replacement fee's, should a complaint be made about the condition of the device.
The children could find four new laptops for this price that exceed what is provided.
Now as for the supposed role of the nurturing, more concerned staff, and intimate nature of the school.
The staff, with few exceptions, are less caring then any school in the area.
SR, is rich in wonderful teachers, and school administrators. True professionals, that prove through their actions, that they are in this profession for a love of teaching, family, children, and community.
RVCS seems to seek these people out, and NOT employ them.
They attract, more likely than not, people who want to work in an overly controlled, overly strict, less challenging environment, with accountability being virtually non existent.
Most of this can be observed as a trickle down effect from the abrasive VP, who is not only openly rude to parents, and students, but obviously an overbearing entity to the entire environment.
Her presence is so hostile as to be noticeable in the demeanor, body language, and tone, of the staff around her.
The comfort of staff, parents, and children, in her presence, as opposed to her absence, is undeniable.
I will leave my review at this.
I hope that something here will confirm what others have felt/thought as well, but were afraid to comment on.
This schools culture is one that is commented on by many parents privately. To state any open, constructive, criticism will not be well received, and if it is, be ready for the consequences.
Forget about professionalism, with regards to you as a entity, V's your children as students.
Your child's privacy is not high on the staffs list, and it is common to overhear conversations.
I was within earshot, as were students, on numerous occasions, when staff aired their feelings about everything from parents financial status, ethnicity, medical conditions, marital/dating status, clothing choices, grades, and the list goes on.
In closing, I would like to thank every other teacher I have had the pleasure of meeting in the SR area school district.
They truly exude the best examples of what true educators are, and should strive to be.
Thankfully, RVSD has managed to quarantine all of the less competent, under qualified, and motivationally challenged staff, into one location.