I have divided my review into multiple sections: education, facilities & technology, social environment, and disciplinary practices.
Education
* The quality of education at this school is a hit or miss. Most of the teachers do not have teaching credentials or are not specially trained in the software that they are assigned to teach. Occasionally, you will find very good teachers who are passionate about their subject and are engaging. The test scores at this school are below average compared to other schools and the students are demotivated. The school has shifted its grading system from the traditional grading scale to standards based grading (which is supposed to make it easier for students to pass). This is detrimental because students who passed on the traditional scale because they are now struggling to maintain As because teachers insist on emphasizing effort rather than grades, which are important when applying to college. This school prides itself on being a college prep school, but the standard of education is low and will not prepare anyone for college. The only worthwhile thing that students learn here is how to rely on retakes to barely pass or how to cheat.
Facilities & Technology
* The buildings are incredibly run down. As you can see from the photos, the buildings are poorly maintained and very damaged. When it rains, the majority of buildings leak and the water needs to be collected in a bucket. The only buildings that are in decent condition are the Everest Buildings that were installed two years ago. There are many holes in and under the buildings around the school. There are many creatures who live under the school. In fact, you can see many cats running out from under these buildings. Once, a rat ran from a hole in a class into another hole! Disgusting! These buildings are not safe for students or staff. Some of them even block cell service, which is dangerous in situations such as a lockdown. The school administrators have been promising students and parents new facilities since 2016. However, nothing has changed. The school administrators constantly brag about their "grand plans" to slowly build a brand new school in the next few years, but no progress has been made, leaving their current school in shambles, which they plan to recycle to another high school establishment. Although this school claims to be a technology school, the technology is practically unusable. The wifi is slow and often times out in the middle of work. The chromebooks are vandalized and have missing keys. Students constantly complain about the technology at this school.
Social Environment
* The social environment is generally nice because students usually stay within their own groups. There are occasional fights at this school(particularly the middle school), but they are resolved quickly. Fights among the high schoolers are rare. As of recently, there have been multiple riot style fights involving the high school students AND staff (admin, counselors, teachers). Footage of this fight can be found on social media. This is worrisome because it demonstrates the rising tension between staff and students. Students at this school have absolutely no respect for the school, and the disciplinary staff have no respect for students.
Disciplinary Practices
* Students feel like this school is run like a prison. The high school dean is rude to students and does not take into consideration any student input. Mrs. Powers has quite a reputation for ignoring high school students' or parents' concerns/reports. If you report something to her, it is not going to be resolved. The accused will just be let off with a warning and they will continue with their poor behavior. She also makes students uncomfortable because she has a habit of staring at students who are hanging outside during lunch for no reason. She very disrespectful to students. Once, she suddenly snatched a drink out of a kid's hand! This is unacceptable and inappropriate. You can find many distraught parents' reviews on Google Reviews. Ultimately, the high school's disciplinary practices are questionable ethically and professionally.
All in all, MIT Academy is not a very good school to send your student. The quality of education is not as good when compared to surrounding schools, facilities are run down and constantly in shambles, kids have no respect for the school, and there are questionable disciplinary practices. read more