Hill Elementary School

8601 Tallwood Drive

School District

Austin Independent
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:14
Type

public

School Map for Austin Independent School District

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 March 03, 2023

I am a happy parents at Hill. Though, one major problem is homework. Me and my family feel that homework shouldn't be needed in elementary school. Children maybe be stressed, or may just not feel confident doing it themselves. One other problem is the school is majorly crowded, and the lunchrooms are really loud and and messy. I've seen lunch monitors put the table cleaner on the floor and re-use it. Other then that, this school is great and the teachers are really interactive.
Submitted by parent on January 16, 2022

Hill School far exceeds most expectations of a large school in an urban district. The administration (principal and AP’s) are highly qualified, responsive, transparent and are effective leaders. This trickles form to the phenomenal teachers, food service providers, custodians, librarians, etc. We could not be happier at Hill and we are picky parents!
Submitted by parent on January 10, 2020

Although Hill, like all schools, is not perfect, our children have had very positive experiences. Their personal and intellectual growth over the 2.5 years they have been at Hill has been astounding. The enrichment programs are excellent.
Submitted by parent on November 15, 2019

My son and daughter attended Hill, ten years apart. Both had excellent experiences. The leadership and teachers have always been very good and care about the outcome students. But what makes Hill special is parental involvement. Parents care and volunteer countless hours to make the school a wonderful place for little ones to learn, grow and develop.
Submitted by parent on March 01, 2019

I would rate this school as 10 out of 10
Submitted by parent on February 12, 2019

I give a 5 star because we have had a very positive experience with Principals, Staff, Teachers and students. This is a very loving community and the parent involvement is high.
Submitted by other on January 19, 2017

The leadership at this school is terrible. The school "appears" to be great, but has numerous problems.
Submitted by other on January 12, 2017

My son has been in attendance since he was in the PreK program. He is now in the 5th grade and we absolutely love the 5th grade set up! Teachers are amazing, the separate building gives them a sense of independence, and the middle school prep is great. The parent involvement is great as well.The negatives:WAY TOO CROWDED! Word got out and now it's full of crummy portables-it's almost at 1,000 students! It was 550 when my child started at Hill! Increase in non-Austin natives. To us true Austinites you'll understand. Nobody waves or smiles at you like they did 3 years ago. The new housing brought more Dallasites and it shows. Many of the great long term teachers are retired or in admin positions. It was such a great school but it's just like any other overpopulated AISD elementary school. Not sure why people buy in this area-middle and high school are terrible!!!
Submitted by other on September 26, 2016

Hill Elementary is a indeed a GREAT school. My daughter is brilliant and is doing an AMAZING job.
Submitted by parent on April 02, 2016

Principal Newton is an incredible leader, and she hires great teachers! We are very happy at Hill!
Submitted by parent on May 29, 2014

Hill elemtary is Awesome sauce like my kid's say, I have two 2nd graders now going to 3rd grade Thanks to the Great Teachers. Nice and Welcoming office staff, And let's not forget all the Great Volunteers, And the people behind the scenes maintenance/janitors.. We will miss this Great School. Hope to see everyone soon. Love The Capetillo Family
Submitted by other on March 05, 2013

This is a wonderful school that has great attention to its students. The programs are challenging, the community strong, and the atmosphere conducive to great learning. The teachers are excellent in every way. Way to go, Hill!
Submitted by parent on May 03, 2012

Hill is a great school!! We are so lucky that our child gets to go to the best school in Austin. Although my child is not in special education, the special education teacher often goes out of his way to provide advice to me and to help my child learn. He is amazing!!!!!!!
Submitted by parent on May 01, 2012

Although this is not our home school, we chose to put our son in the Pre-k program there. The teachers are great and the parents are VERY involved. My son has a speech issue (articulation). The speech therapist is amazing. My son s speech improved much in his year there. I would definitely recommend the school!
Submitted by parent on July 18, 2011

Ok, so I have been reading the past four reviews (sounds like the 'learning disability' review was written by a parent who was demanding too much out of a public school) and I disagree!!!! If a child has severe learning disorders, put them into a special school that helps to work with their problem. You can't expect a public school to fix that problem. The two June reviews written back to back was obviously written by a parent of a child who got in trouble for bad behavior. They are trying to justify it by writing 2 bad reviews back to back. Not to be mean, but check out the literacy on the June 1st review. That's all I'm saying. I moved from Crestview neighborhood to put my child here, and we were so pleased with his writing/reading skills in just a matter of a few months!! We love the Principals!!! The parent-teacher involvement is amazing! If you're a parent trying to send your kid here, and not care about their schooling, go elsewhere! They do NOT tolerate bad behavior/fighting! It's amazing!!!!!! Gullett, Brentwood, Wooten, Lamar, McCallum, Austin High-horrible because of the influx of transfers. Hill does not have alot of transfers. It makes a HUGE difference!
Submitted by parent on June 02, 2011

I Love this school but... some staff I find like to demote my kid's self respect.
Submitted by parent on June 01, 2011

this is one of the worst elementaries in every way posible that you can think off.i can not believe that it is rated ''10'' that's a big lie.it shoul be a 1 .we had a lot of bad experiences in this horrible elementary.kids say bad words in front of the teachers,there is no homework,teachers have no work ethic,etc.
Submitted by parent on March 23, 2011

Hill is good for students in the "norm". I agree with a recently posted review in that Hill does not cater to students who have learning disabilities. Our son has ADHD, as do so many other children, and the staff at Hill was unable to cope with that. Our daughter is at the other end of the spectrum, and is bored with what is being done in the classroom -- the classroom environment is not flexible enough, because of the large class size (25 kids with 1 teacher in Kindergarten!), to be able to challenge students who are doing well. Our discussions with the staff and teachers have always ended up with them telling us that "this is public school, and that they do not have the time and people to accommodate outside the norms". And, the counselor is not helpful nor caring. Again, Hill is great if your child does not require any special educational accommodations. We are moving our children to a smaller private school with a better teacher-to-student ratio and a more personalized learning experience.
Submitted by parent on March 22, 2011

This school is great if your child DOESN'T have a learning disability like a moderate form of dyslexia, they act like they have never heard of dyslexia & do not have a plan in place to teach a dyslexic child to read! They don't have a diagnostician full time, nor do they have any current dyslexic specialist! Ten to fifteen percent of the US population has dyslexia, and Hill acts like they missed those stats! They (the Hill staff) expect the parent to know what questions to ask & how their child should be taught when the average parent has no experience in this! I can only imagine how many poor kids are falling through the cracks! I have talked with a number of other parents that have LEFT HILL b/c of the lack of resources & interest in helping their dyslexic child!
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2011

We have been nothing but pleased with all teachers and staff. The principal is very receptive to parents and always seems present at all activities. Our experience has been a good one and we will have another kindergartner starting next year. We are lucky to attend Hill and have many friends that are looking to move into our area, for the school alone!