Peak Charter Academy

1601 Orchard Villas Ave

School District

Peak Charter Academy
Grade

K-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:22
Type

charter

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on February 19, 2025

We are on our 6th year at Peak. My 5th grader had a great experience (even through Covid) up until 3rd grade. At this point Peak’s differential learning experience began and we also began to experience the lack of licensed, capable teachers. My child scored higher at the beginning of the school year than at the end in regards to ELA. Through out the school year her teacher never sent home any work and when asked about quizzes and test the teacher would continually push dates back. When the quarter approached the end the teacher would then input several grades seemingly out of thin air. 4th grade we lacked a ELA teacher for half of the school year putting the entire grade behind. Math was taught by a nice person with no experience teaching. Not to mention that my daughter was bullied for a quarter of the year and this was never brought to our attention even though the staff was aware and had a private meeting with her and a few other students that they didn’t make us aware of. Now that we are on 5th grade we are on our third math teacher and have had abysmal communication from the dean or administration. In comparison our 2nd grader has had three years of phenomenal teachers who communicate and work with us to appropriately challenge our child. It seems to me the problem occurs once the kids move upstairs. There is a lot that we signed up for, and were sold on as a family that Peak has completely over promised and under delivered.
Submitted by other on December 15, 2024

When I first started here, I was quite impressed by this school. But at some point I started realizing that this school is quite bad and not able to provide basic resources for their students compared to wake county schools. They only have 30 seats per grade for advanced mathematics, which means that students who are required to be in advanced math don't get in. This school also treats middle schoolers like kindergartners, making us walk in lines in the hallway and making us wait outside of classrooms until the bell rings. Overall, I would not recommend this school, but it weighs for some people I guess.
Submitted by parent on October 25, 2024

Title: Disappointing Experience at Peak Charter AcademyI enrolled my child at Peak Charter Academy with high hopes, but sadly, the experience has been less than satisfactory. While the school touts a commitment to academic excellence, I've found the teaching quality to be inconsistent at best. Some teachers seem passionate, but others appear disengaged, leaving students feeling unsupported.Communication from the administration is often lacking, making it difficult to stay informed about important events or changes. Additionally, the school environment can feel overly strict and not conducive to fostering a love of learning.Extracurricular activities are minimal, which is disappointing for families looking for a well-rounded education. Overall, I had hoped for a nurturing and academically rigorous environment, but my experience has led me to seek better options for my child's education.
Submitted by parent on September 19, 2024

My children came from a private school in the area and Peak has far exceeded our expectations! The administration and staff at Peak are amazing. I would highly recommend this school to anyone. My children have smiles everyday at pick up, which is way different than pick up at their previous private school. Happiness, learning, communication and a strong character atmosphere are what makes Peak Charter Academy an excellent school choice.
Submitted by parent on September 19, 2024

We have been at Peak Charter since it first opened 8 years ago. Both our children started at this school in kindergarten and one is now in 7th grade and one is in 4th grade. The staff at this school, from front office to teachers to principal are a FAMILY. They love your children like their own. I see growth in my children not just in the education and what they are learning but in their social and emotional growth too. The workshop model in the classroom has allowed my children, who both learn very differently, to thrive. They find the strengths and celebrate them while helping to fill in where help is needed. We love this school!
Submitted by parent on September 18, 2024

I'm honestly surprised by the negative reviews on here. Both of my kids are at this school and have been since 2021. We've been satisfied... They are excited to go to school every day and to me there is no greater guage. We've had some great caring teachers who genuinely wanted my kids to thrive. All schools are struggling to retain teachers, and Peak is no exception. All schools care about test scores because that's how they're funded unless you're fortunate enough to send your kids to private school. Peak has after school clubs and very affordable options for after school care. You have to be buzzed into the building and security and communication have never been an issue. That said, I do wish they had a library and a proper cafeteria. We plan to stay at this school and wish they would open a high school!
Submitted by other on August 28, 2024

This school has gone downhill, I attended this school for a year and everything was fine, after that it went downhill and everything was just a way to get money. They only cared about kids getting good test scores and being awarded the best charter school, they had no care for anything else. The leadership is terrible and nothing is done to help kids who actually need it. So many kids could have done better if someone who was in power actually helped them rather than just kick it to the curb. A lot of nepotism and just overall no care for anyone who isn’t at the top.
Submitted by parent on April 25, 2024

There are a few gems. Overall I think the concern is focused on making students fit a box & test scores for stats. Having a child with special needs, my experience has been a struggle & a fight. It took A lot to get a 504 plan in place. There was push back the whole way. The school year was more than half over. Asked several times to meet in person with my student after complaints, mostly related to focus & disability. The principal refused but in parent teacher meetings they wanted the student there to hear all the negative. In a previous parent meeting, a teacher made a disparaging comment to my student. The other two teachers just sat there. Not going to put my students through that. The response was to have the teacher call me. I am told the teacher continues to make examples and makes negative comments which adds to the stress of being perceived as different. The teacher also chuckled at a new hair cut. Not everyone learns in the same way or has the same abilities but my child can learn and is super smart just not nuro-typical. I’m not finding it’s the positive environment or education that “shapes instruction to build on the strengths and abilities of each child”. I’d like that instruction please.I do have to say the special Ed Dean is great but feel there is admin. push and pull behind the scenes - just a hunch.PTO meetings are still on-line. That makes it hard to connect. I’ve gone to several PTO events and seen no-one. Gone to sports and no-one wants to talk even in breaks. It’s just- hey are you with Peak- yeah. Where’s the community?The carpool line is insane, often taking 20-30 + minutes. Lots of communication about not coming early so there a mad rush during the window. There have been issues with my work because of long carpool times. I asked in the office for options and was told I could pay money to try to have the “skip the carpool” lotto that I might get or not. For working single parents using a late lunch for pick up, it is really challenging especially when there’s a commute. The only answer is pay more money, Rather than walk up. On a single income. I get they can’t make an exception for everyone. There really is no understanding and sometimes the office staff are just really short. Point being that people do make sacrifices to have their children go to what was is billed as an exceptional school and I’m just not seeing the care or community or the character that is expected from the students.
Submitted by parent on February 20, 2024

This school is just plain bad. there are almost no extracurricular activities and my son loves sports but he reported bullying at basketball practice. "The swing" (as my son calls it) is very unsafe because he saw some kid get kicked in the face by someone on the swing.
Submitted by parent on January 13, 2024

Come to Peak Charter if you want to work a little harder, and you want a school that works smarter and harder for you. We joined 6 months ago, and it's been good. Some aspects could be improved, but they're doing more with less. Bussing would make the school more accessible to single parents or those with less means. Charters generally struggle with meeting IEPs. Things are a bit too personality-centric around the principal. But it's not some hellhole like these other reviews say. They're well-meaning. Kids are smiling, and the teachers are nice.Most importantly, Peak Charter has their eye on the prize -- learning. Their Student Progress score speaks for itself.I'll update my review each year we stay at the school or when we leave.
Submitted by parent on January 12, 2024

All they care about is having fun within the teachers . Not interested in child development. IEP and special education is a joke. No proper clubs, teachers keep on leaving . Car pool is a disaster and unsafe. Just sticking to this school because this is traditional, but our assigned school is year round . Can’t manage different track outs for 2 kids. If you don’t care about year round then stay from this school
Submitted by teacher on January 04, 2024

I can't think of a positive thing to say. In my many years teaching at public, private, and charter schools, Peak Charter is a huge train wreck. The politics to keep this place running is impressive. I watched as teacher after teacher left. Then the families followed. It didn't take long for parents to realize their kids were unprepared for high school. Most importantly, there is no effort to meet the diverse needs of students. No IEPs are met. No school counselor. No intervention staff. No library. No support for teachers. But as a teacher, I'm so glad I taught at Peak. I now see clearly why there is a strong hate for charter schools. Peak Charter is a business. They spend money on growing their business, not ensuring that every child has a quality education. And they certainly do not value their teachers. Parents who choose this school do so blindly. They tell themselves...."Maybe the class sizes will come down. Maybe my child's teacher will stay at least half a year. Maybe my child won't need any additional services to meet their educational needs. Maybe my child's teacher will have the support they need to be successful. Maybe my child will have all the curriculum taught to prepare them for high school. Maybe the principal isn't lying to me. Maybe my concerns will be heard with respect." Don't be a fool. Run! There are so many better options.
Submitted by teacher on November 30, 2023

Former teacher at Peak here. The year I spent at Peak was one of my worst teaching experiences in 15 years of teaching. Their tiered classrooms group students by test scores, which is a horrible practice. I cried when I was made to divide class lists this way and change student schedules. Classes are way too large. Despite the best intentions of special ed teachers, there was not enough staffing or quality infrastructure to effectively implement IEP’s. As a teacher, I was micromanaged, undermined, made to feel incompetent, chastised, and my teaching creativity was stifled. In all my observations I was never given a positive/encouraging note. I wanted to help and do more for many students and just couldn’t do what I knew needed to be done. It was definitely a toxic environment. There was no joy. The upper grades were treated like primary kids. We had so many behavior problems and I think it was because older students felt like a lot of what we were doing was beneath them. In my one year there handful of teachers left mid year and even more left at the end of that school year. It was awful!
Submitted by parent on September 02, 2022

My son just started at Peak Charter Academy last week and so far I am very impressed and completely happy with everything! From the amazing tour we received at the school that was so informative and the whole ease of the registration process, to all the spectacular communication via emails and texts. Everyone that we encountered working at this school is so nice, knowledgable and helpful. I feel this school is really organized and just overall a great school and there are continuous emails and/or texts from teachers, the principal and the school staff with updated information...which is wonderful to have! On top of everything my son already loves this school since day 1, he likes all his teachers, he is excited to go to school, really engaged in all his classes, made friends easily and is overall just a great experience. It is a breath of fresh air compared to my son's previous schools. I feel so lucky to have him in this school. I can't wait to see how else this school will impress me for the remainder of the school year! Thank you Peak Charter Academy for being awesome!
Submitted by parent on September 02, 2022

When it first opened, there were some difficulties. However, my son has excelled and loves the school. Covid was difficult, but it was for every school. The principal is friendly and knows all the kids. He is proactive in working out issues. The teachers do rotate in and out, but most of them, we have had no problems with. The carpool drop off and pickup sucks, but with no busses, there is not much to do about that. Overall I rate the school, A-. No body is perfect and there is always room to improve. I love the moral focus program. They do live by it every day.
Submitted by parent on February 24, 2022

Some really good teachers who really care, but the administration is mostly autocratic, overbearing and condescending. If you challenge them or disagree with their policies they become very adversarial. It became a toxic environment as problems were revealed during COVID, and we hung on because of the teachers, but ultimately withdrew our children after winter break and decided to undo the damage by finishing the year homeschooling and traveling. Best decision we could’ve made.If you are someone who goes with the flow and does everything the administration tells you, you and your child will be fine here. If you question the leadership, you’ll be encouraged to leave.
Submitted by other on November 14, 2021

Spent a few years with PCA, and it's sadly gone downhill. The biggest issue is probably the inability to maintain staff, especially in the lower grades. There's too much turnover. In general, their admin staff doesn't seem to handle issues well. If things are going great, no big deal, but they don't handle any negative feedback well. There's also a major issue with lack of handling learning differences. They have too many students in the classroom and too few teachers/assistants to handle any IEP or other accommodations.Basically, if your kid would do fine with self-learning with few elective options, this school will be fine. If not, look elsewhere.
Submitted by parent on September 10, 2021

After two years at this school, we pulled our child out and couldn't be happier with our decision. Over half of the teachers and many, many families left last year due to the toxic culture that has been created by the administration. The principal is beyond unapproachable and his response, to both staff and parents, is "if you don't like it, you can leave." He follows this up by handing anyone who dares to question him a withdrawal form. Our issue was that my child's teacher had no teaching experience and, unfortunately, couldn't write basic sentences without multiple spelling errors and couldn't help students with second grade math equations. We politely raised our concerns with the principal and asked whether he could observe a class to see for himself what was going on. He not only refused to meet with us and refused to observe the class but he sent us an eight word response basically telling us that, if we didn't like it, we should leave. More recently, with COVID numbers sky high, parents have asked whether, like many other schools across the country, students could either eat lunch in their classrooms or outside. Currently, all of the students are crammed into a small cafeteria, facing each other, with 6 inches between them. Again, the principal's response was a flat 'No' and told those parents that, if they weren't happy, they could find another school. Many families, only a few weeks into the school year, have departed and the prevailing feeling at the school is one of unhappiness, despair, and people frantically trying to find a new school for their children. Please think twice before sending your child to this oppressive, tyrannical institution that puts profits before children.
Submitted by other on August 19, 2021

We had been on the fence about this year, but after returning to school to see all the teachers gone, that was it. It's clear there's a major cultural shift there the last couple years. Sad...
Submitted by teacher on June 10, 2021

At what point will the school board and parents wake up to the toxic culture created by the admin team. Teachers are fleeing this school. It's sad here is no exit interviews or anonymous ways to give authentic feedback.