Let's start by putting some facts out there... Superintendent Roby makes over $279,000 a year and…read morewas awarded a recent 3% raise for a school district that is failing miserably. Despite being called "effective" in her role, I don't see the evidence to support it. But then again, it was the School Board that gave her this distinction of performance, not any parent group, focus group or state evaluation. The average salary for a school superintendent is around $160,000 in most of the country. Why is her salary so much higher? One word: IMAGE. For whatever reason, Grand Rapids feels as if they owe her this and wants to make some sort of statement and overpays in doing so. Data directly from Education Recovery Scorecard shows the math skills performance for grades 3 to 8 at an incredibly low level and far below the national average. This is directly from Education Recovery's data reporting: "Grand Rapids Public Schools, 24% of elementary students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 14% tested at or above that level for math. Also, 32% of middle school students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 20% tested at or above that level for math. And 39% of high school students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 17% tested at or above that level for math." These are absolutely terrible results. FAILING GRADES. To give you an idea of the type of student attending, U.S. News and World Report provides the following: "Grand Rapids Public Schools contains 51 schools and 13,787 students. The district's minority enrollment is 70%. Also, 62.5% of students are economically disadvantaged." THIS MEANS THEY MOST LIKELY ARE NOT HOMEOWNERS WHO PAY FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S BUDGET. Basically, my taxes are not paid to educate. I'm paying to house and feed a bunch of kids who cannot read or do math for eight hours a day. ("At schools in Grand Rapids Public Schools, 62.5% of students are eligible to participate in the federal free and reduced price meal.") Lots of people not doing their jobs and it's been this way for decades. They call themselves "educators," and they cannot even meet the definition of their job description. It's time to fire every one of them.

My daughter goes to Southwest Community School. The location is at 801 Oakland Ave SW, Grand…read moreRapids, MI 49503. The school is not very open to teaching european americans the spanish language. They make european americans feel very uncomfortable with their smirks, and evil stares. Teachers show favoritism to the students, that are of latino origin. This school does not accept different cultures. Madrigal Dessouassi is a horrible teacher teacher, and does not grades fairly, and favors students. I would recommend if you are an American, avoid taking your kids here. Bullying is acceptable at this school. Also there are no adults supervising young children on the playground. I received many calls from the main office saying my daughter was injured on the playground. The equipment on the playground is very hazardous.

Greatest elementary and church in West Michiganread more

March 8: St Paul Baja Tacos…read more This is my inaugural fish fry review and my first time trying out St. Paul's! We usually frequent St. Al's or West's all you can eat fish fry, but decided to try a new place to start out our Lenten 2019 season. My dad actually suggested we try this for dinner tonight and it was such a great experience - so different from what we've had in the past! First off, St. Paul's takes online reservations for 3 serving times: 5, 545 and 630. We opted for the later time which may have not been a good idea because the toppings bar was sparse. When we arrived, there was a line (which we're used to from other fish fries) to the hostess stand but it moved quickly and we were seated at a round table with place settings and a light up lei centerpiece. We were given 2 premade fried fish tacos on corn tortillas, a side of rice and refried beans. At the toppings bar, we had unlimited choices of 1. avocado cream: too sour 2. diced green peppers 3. Pickled purple onions 4. Pickled cabbage 5. Pico de gallo 6. Salsa 7. White sauce 8. Cotilla cheese: so good 9. Chopped cilantro 10. Green salsa 11. Tortilla chips Everything was fresh and the line to the toppings bar was short too! There was water and coffee available as well as a cash bar for beer and wine. Our plates were cleared by kid volunteers. It was the quickest and least smelly fish fry experience I've ever had (usually, after a fish fry, I have to wash my coat because of the overpowering fried food smell!). They also had a few desserts for $1 each and by the time we made it to the table, there were only 2 kinds of cake, brownies, sugar cookies and Rice Krispies left. St. Paul has an immaculate restroom. There was plenty of space to move around the tables. They had high tables sectioned behind a curtain to enjoy drinks as well. Overall, this was a great start to fish fry season! From their website: Join us for Baja Fish Taco's the Following Friday's During Lent March 8th, March 22nd, April 12 Make your Reservations below for March 8th 5pm, 5:45pm and 6:30pm and receive a discount Day of walk-in's welcome, but will have to wait to be seated and will pay a higher price. Adult meal $12, Senior meal $11, Kids $5 and no family discount Reservation Costs: $10 Adult Meal/$9 Senior Meal: 2 Baja Fish Tacos, toppings, sides and drinks $5 (12 and under) Kids meal: Mac N Cheese and drinks $1 Desserts will be sold at the event If you purchase 4 or more tickets in reservation, get $5 off purchase with discount code: Family Proceeds will benefit St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church & School

From the owner: Twist on normal Lent Fish Fry. Baja Fish Taco Nights. Choice of Breaded & Fried Mahi Mahi or…read moreGrilled Shrimp. We also have Mac N Cheese and Salad Bar.

We've been delighted with the quality of education our children have received since transferring…read morehere from a private school. The teachers all seem to be engaged and there are music and art activities available. There are a couple of drawbacks. Their campus is too small. There is not enough space for the children to play outside and getting in and out of the parking lot creates massive headaches for anyone travelling down 3 Mile Rd. Class size is relatively large. Communication with parents isn't the best. It seems like there should be more information such as upcoming events or news on their website and there is precious little available. I couldn't check up on an event my children informed about and couldn't remember the details.

This review is only for their Friday fish fry during Lent. It's around $15 for an adult meal that…read moreincludes fried or baked fish, fries or baked potato, coleslaw or apple sauce, and homemade mac and cheese. You can also buy up to two additional pieces of fish and they usually have a small dessert option (last time it was cups of ice cream or cookies). They also have kids meals available. The line moves pretty quickly and this one isn't as popular as some of the other local fish fries, plus it's close to our house so we usually go once a year. Payment is cash or check only. The food is always pretty tasty but we always laugh about the mac and cheese - it has onions in it, which I think is such a polarizing ingredient to put into mac and cheese. But I like it! Overall it's not the best fish fry but it's still a good option especially if you live in the area. They have a small parking lot and there is street parking available.

Dutton Christian School is an amazing school. I have 3 kids here and am amazed at the personal…read moreattention each receives. They are loved and cared for. The curriculum is spot on, my kids are learning and growing daily. I highly recommend DCS to anyone looking for a school.

From the owner: We offer a Christian education preschool to 8th grade…read more Noah's Art Christian Pre-School provides a Christ-centered educational experience for three- and four-year olds in a loving, nurturing environment. Our qualified teachers and staff strive to meet the needs of each child at their stage of development while fostering their social, emotional, spiritual and academic growth. Our curriculum is Biblically-based, professionally designed, and academically sound. Students are challenged in all subject areas. Students in third through eighth grades took the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) in March 2012. We are pleased that the average percentile rank of all the grade levels' core scores is 91%. This ranks us among the top 9% of schools nationwide who participated in this year's test.

This is the address for East Oakview Elementary…read more One of several elementary schools in the Northview Public Schools district. Nice, but older, building with a very good staff.

I cannot say enough good things about Canterbury Creek Farm School. Our family is still new-ish to…read moreGrand Rapids -- we moved here two years ago from Chicago -- and Farm School quickly became like a second family to our 3.5yo son. Born a COVID baby, he has always loved to play independently, but struggled in group situations. The staff and owners are incredibly compassionate and caring -- encouraging our son to play with others, but at his own pace. He has completely come out of his shell over this school year. It has been a joy to see the daily updates on the Brightwheel app (which teachers update during the school day), so that even when I am at work, I can relish in the absolute joy of a time our son is having at school. Time spent outdoors and with the animals is not only great for our high energy boy to blow off steam, but teaches so many life skills (outside of a classroom) that are so necessary to early childhood development. Their approach to early childhood education is incredible -- keeps all the content fun for kids, but with incredible impact. To compare his self-portrait and handwritten name from the beginning to the end of the year is insane! His end of year book brought me to tears -- and made me feel even more blessed to be a part of the Canterbury Creek family. In fact, this morning on our way to drop off, he told me he was so sad that school was over and that he would miss it over the summer. Good thing we will be back for Summer Camp and next school year. I cannot wait to sign up my 2.5yo daughter next!

We love Canterbury Creek. Its so cool that the kids get a full education here not just for…read morethemselves but for the animals too, it' so important at an early age to make sure kids have respect for all lives and they do with their interaction, feeding and caring for the animals here. Totally unique school, wonderful education, loving and caring instructors and overall a great, first class school all the way around. Our 4 year old daugher was at preschool there and will go again for young fives next year. We will do two summer camps with her and 6 year old sister.