I have had three children in this district. This is my second year at Phillips. I thought I was alone in concerns about this school until visiting with other parents. The teachers of this school are outstanding schools and have very good skills at reaching children of all levels. They have a vice-principal that can also reach just about any child and seems to be respected by all the children there. My concern is that the district has an ""anti-bullying"" policy and they encourage parents to report bully. However, the biggest ""bullies"" are the ladies who ""manage"" the children during their lunch hour while teachers on are break. Two of them carry whistles like drill sergeants. Several parents I've talked to say they don't go the visit their children at lunch because they go away with a sour stomach because of these ladies. They use fear and intimidation to run the lunch room. They demand respect from these children, yet give very little in return. After the lunch hour, the children go to recess. I'm concerned that the bullying they experience during their lunch hour then trickles over into their recess experiences. (i.e. the adult bullied, it's ok for me to intimidate and bully). The issue has been raised by more than one parent to the principal, yet these ladies are still allowed to tote their whistles and expose these kids to intimidation. I would encourage parents to really listen to their kids when they are down about how they are treated at Phillips. I would also encourage them to drop by and see how they feel during the lunch hour. If you were to go to a retail store like, Wal-Mart, would you as a person tolerate being treated like our children are treated. I really hate for the progress that the outstanding teachers at Phillips make to be deterred by aids that have no business being around children. Hopefully more parents will get involved and demand better for their children.
Pros: teachers are very creative, counselor and vice-principal are responsive
Cons: aids lack skills to instill or motivate children with respect
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