Recommend Westbrook Elementary?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’ve been at the school for 10 straight years with multiple kids. It’s a fabulous school with wonderful teachers and a strong PTA (though the PTA seems to be more cash-strapped and short on volunteers now that the school has increased in size). Yes, it was a transition after COVID for our school to nearly double in size with the boundary change, but it’s still smaller than even some local private schools (e.g., Blessed Sacrament has more classes per grade in some grades). I strongly dislike the principal and do not know why she is currently on leave (when this happened last time everyone speculated she had been fired, but to their dismay it was for other reasons and life went I ). However, the teachers and community are strong enough to allow me to just block her out and still have a great experience for our family and kids.

It's out just me was the PTA carnival so underwhelming and just a cash grab this year?

[Anonymous]

The carnival was completely underwhelming, I spent twice as much as prior years, my kid only went on three rides, each once, and the cute homey touches were gone. No t shirts, bottlemania, food trucks, MS/HS bands, KAH climbing wall and bounce houses, parent volunteers wearing recognizable sashes or hats, etc. Very confusing about which things needed wrist band, tickets, cash, etc. To kick off carnival with excited kids running out of the school straight to a twenty minute ticket line ....nope. they needed those wristbands on and ready to go from their classrooms. Total turn off in every way. For the first year ever, I also worried about outsiders (teens mostly) coming in and making security disturbances since it was apparently advertised throughout the county. I get the pressure to hedge on bad weather and make money for the school but I did not enjoy this year's experiment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The carnival was completely underwhelming, I spent twice as much as prior years, my kid only went on three rides, each once, and the cute homey touches were gone. No t shirts, bottlemania, food trucks, MS/HS bands, KAH climbing wall and bounce houses, parent volunteers wearing recognizable sashes or hats, etc. Very confusing about which things needed wrist band, tickets, cash, etc. To kick off carnival with excited kids running out of the school straight to a twenty minute ticket line ....nope. they needed those wristbands on and ready to go from their classrooms. Total turn off in every way. For the first year ever, I also worried about outsiders (teens mostly) coming in and making security disturbances since it was apparently advertised throughout the county. I get the pressure to hedge on bad weather and make money for the school but I did not enjoy this year's experiment.

All of this. And for some reason they moved the rides from the grass lawn to an asphalt parking lot. I saw some kids stagger off some rides, fall and go splat on the hard ground. They hyped it up to be bigger and better but it was not good. No rides, no food, and somehow a seedier atmosphere.

[Anonymous]

What rides do they have?? At an ES spring festival?

[Anonymous]

This makes me so sad. My kids went there forever ago (my youngest is graduating from B-CC this year) and Carnival was the best! The way the kids would look forward to it forever and just run out and have the best time! It was huge. It was always amazing that it was so impressive each year and they made so much money. I always remember it as a huge fundraiser. What caused them to downsize it? My dd got a design on the t-shirt- it was a Star Wats theme, that’s all I remember. But we definitely got the tickets before leaving the school and it was fun for kids and parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What rides do they have?? At an ES spring festival?

They've always hired a carnival ride company to run a number of rides (several spinning/nauseating things, small Ferris wheel, little kid stuff, etc). On the first day of the carnival, one ride was already deemed out of service and another not even installed, so very lame first impression. All the hype over bigger and better fell flat. They claimed they couldn't set up on the grass bc too muddy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This makes me so sad. My kids went there forever ago (my youngest is graduating from B-CC this year) and Carnival was the best! The way the kids would look forward to it forever and just run out and have the best time! It was huge. It was always amazing that it was so impressive each year and they made so much money. I always remember it as a huge fundraiser. What caused them to downsize it? My dd got a design on the t-shirt- it was a Star Wats theme, that’s all I remember. But we definitely got the tickets before leaving the school and it was fun for kids and parents.

They stopped doing the t-shirts this year

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This makes me so sad. My kids went there forever ago (my youngest is graduating from B-CC this year) and Carnival was the best! The way the kids would look forward to it forever and just run out and have the best time! It was huge. It was always amazing that it was so impressive each year and they made so much money. I always remember it as a huge fundraiser. What caused them to downsize it? My dd got a design on the t-shirt- it was a Star Wats theme, that’s all I remember. But we definitely got the tickets before leaving the school and it was fun for kids and parents.

They stopped doing the t-shirts this year

I'm curious if any of the people complaining have ever volunteered to help with the event.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This makes me so sad. My kids went there forever ago (my youngest is graduating from B-CC this year) and Carnival was the best! The way the kids would look forward to it forever and just run out and have the best time! It was huge. It was always amazing that it was so impressive each year and they made so much money. I always remember it as a huge fundraiser. What caused them to downsize it? My dd got a design on the t-shirt- it was a Star Wats theme, that’s all I remember. But we definitely got the tickets before leaving the school and it was fun for kids and parents.

They stopped doing the t-shirts this year

I'm curious if any of the people complaining have ever volunteered to help with the event.

I both complained and volunteered. I saw how the sausage is made, and it's not pretty!

[Anonymous]

I was an earlier PP with children in high school. Yes, I volunteered, but what was even more common was a whole slew of middle school and high schoolers coming back to volunteer for SSL credits. It was a big social gathering for the Westbrook alum. Is that not still the case?

[Anonymous]

I’m also a volunteer and a complainer and this year’s carnival definitely fell flat. The bigger and better was really just longer and more expensive. The rides sucked for older kids. Barely any food, all I saw was Potomac pizza, popcorn and the ice cream truck. There used to be a whole parking lot with food and food trucks. No more cake walk or bottle mania! It just lost its personal touch this year and definitely felt more like we farmed it out to some company.

[Anonymous]

I know the organizers (same as last year, parent volunteers) had the best of intentions, but agree it was over hyped and under executed.

[Anonymous]

My child is starting this year and see in another thread that the principal was on leave ending the year. Is she staying (I haven’t heard the best things about her) or how does the school run when they are down an administrator? Is the SESES program pretty contained? We are coming from another school where the students from the SESES program took up all the teacher’s energy and the classes were still really large. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with the above comment that the principal is not good and ruined the school. She is not kept updated with the latest scientific research on how to develop the welling of students. She heavily relies on the other staff in the school but uses her authority to suspend anyone she feels like. Unfortunately, she is also a racist and not honest.

As someone with kids at westbrook, this poster seems unhinged. All the positive stuff in earlier posts is true.

it’s not hinged, it’s someone’s experience. There are over 500 family goes to school, yours is not mine. You can disagree but please don’t attack.

Agreed!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is starting this year and see in another thread that the principal was on leave ending the year. Is she staying (I haven’t heard the best things about her) or how does the school run when they are down an administrator? Is the SESES program pretty contained? We are coming from another school where the students from the SESES program took up all the teacher’s energy and the classes were still really large. Thanks.

Unfortunately your prior experience was ours this year at Westbrook. Class of 30 with many behavioral disruptions by a particular student with aide(s).