**One star: Why our family left Guajome**
This review is several years overdue. Our daughters attended Guajome for a couple of years, and my wife worked there for several years. The experiences described here principally concern 2019-2020. I'm writing now because parents considering this school deserve to hear why a family that started with high hopes ultimately left.
There were some positives. Barely. We appreciated some caring teachers, particularly at the elementary level, and thought the independent study program had worthwhile aspects. Our criticism is primarily about administrative judgment, the learning environment, and how serious concerns were handled.
We chose a charter school hoping for meaningful parent involvement and a stronger educational experience. What we increasingly encountered felt like an institution defending its existing decisions rather than working with parents.
**An assembly we reviewed firsthand**
When our older daughter was in sixth grade, the school hosted Kaiser's "Someone Like Me" presentation. We felt the advance information did not adequately explain its content, so we opted her out. I attended personally to see what was being presented.
Although the production addressed worthwhile subjects such as bullying and seeking help, it included sexual propositions and sexual rumors that were totally inappropriate for sixth graders. My objection was to the specific content and the inadequate information parents received beforehand.
In February 2019, I wrote to multiple administrators, including the superintendent and curriculum administrator, describing what I had witnessed and why I objected. This was a detailed parental complaint based on attending the presentation myself.
**Sex education and the response to our concerns**
The following year, we attended the parent preview for the seventh-grade sexual health program and reviewed its curriculum. We considered portions unnecessarily explicit and inappropriate for our daughter's maturity level, and opted her out.
That did not prevent classmates from relaying material to her afterward. She was upset by information she was not prepared to process. For our family, "you can opt out" did not resolve the broader concern about the environment she was spending her days in.
We sought answers and requested a meeting. The curriculum administrator referred us to the PE department, and we were directed toward the outside provider for curriculum questions.
A subsequent response, preserved in our correspondence from that time, stated that the school believed the program "best meets the needs of our students" and would consider parent feedback. We found that response canned and dismissive. It did not meaningfully explain why the specific material we objected to was appropriate.
**The everyday environment**
Our concerns extended beyond sex education. Our daughter reported persistent foul language and pressure to vape, including being insulted when she refused. We also felt she was not being sufficiently challenged academically.
As she moved into the later grades, she reported increasingly being singled out over her race and perceived family income. Not knowing a particular Hispanic tradition would prompt comments about her being "so white." She also reported being called "racist" and a "rich girl," with the latter apparently based on our family living in a house rather than an apartment.
We found those comments obviously demeaning. We wanted her in a school environment where students could learn about different backgrounds without being mocked or labeled because of their own.
In May 2020, my wife explained to a teacher why we were withdrawing our children, while also expressing how much we valued that teacher. We could appreciate individual teachers and still conclude that the school environment was not right for our daughters.
**A separate concern about staff safety**
My wife also described a serious incident involving a student who accidentally shot himself off campus as he was planning to bring a gun to school. In March 2020, she objected in writing to discussion of that student possibly returning to her classroom, specifically citing concerns about his access to and use of guns.
The administrator who replied said she would advocate against his return to that class but could not promise it. The possibility being discussed was deeply troubling to my wife for obvious reasons.
My wife also told me that, in a closed staff meeting following the incident, the administration instructed staff not to speak to the press. Hearing her account left me concerned that managing the school's public image was receiving attention that should have been focused on reassuring staff about safety.
**Why we left**
Did Guajome offer some advantages over a conventional district school? In our view, yes, but nowhere near enough to outweigh these problems. read more
