Irwin Academic Center

329 North Irwin Avenue

School District

Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:13
Type

public

School Map for Charlotte-Mecklenburg 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 November 25, 2019

I have two children at Irwin. They both have had very positive experiences. I love the sense of community and diversity of the students. We feel really lucky to have this opportunity for our children.
Submitted by parent on September 07, 2018

good school overall.My kid was happy going to school.Teachers are always there for kids when they need.
Submitted by student on April 06, 2018

You see how low those suspension rates are? Well that’s because they suspend about nobody, if you hit, punch, kick, be mean, etc to anyone here you won’t get in trouble. Nobody here is under control of this awful school, some teachers are rude for no reason. I would rate my experience here in the negatives if I could.
Submitted by parent on January 12, 2018

Terrible! First of all Teachers and Community Members should not be allowed to post on this website. The website serves as an avenue where Parents can be honest about schools so that other Parents can make sound decisions. These kids are gifted so they test well. The Teachers do not teach here they spend most of their during school hours studying for licenses they should received prior to getting hired. The student teach themselves
Submitted by teacher on February 06, 2017

I was a teacher at Irwin and I felt very supported by the administration as well as the PTA. This is a great place to work!
Submitted by other on August 21, 2016

The school is very welcoming and committed to the excellence of children. The principal is very forward thinking. The parents are very committed to pouring in to the community. As a result of this collective commitment.... Irwin thrives.
Submitted by parent on November 30, 2015

The staff and overall atmosphere of Irwin Academic Center is wrapped up into one word, "Family". As soon as you enter the front door, you can tell everyone enjoys being there and considers all -family! Students and parents are welcomed with open arms. The curriculum is challenging for all students and my husband and I have seen how our daughter's knowledge base has expanded. She enjoys learning and loves her teachers! We thank you for the hard work and dedication to help make our children's education exceed our expectations!
Submitted by parent on November 21, 2015

Irwin has a great tradition of being a full magnet school and they take pride in preserving that tradition by continuing to enhance the educational boundaries of its students through innovation and great support from the PTA. Irwin is one of the best elementary schools in Charlotte, NC.
Submitted by parent on March 19, 2015

The new principal is approachable, concerned and a great addition to Irwin. The environment and morale has changed 100% for the better under her guidance. However with the large amount of teachers new to the school or new to the grade it has caused some huge bumps with curriculum and communication. The PTA is strong and the children are challenged but unfortunately it is a teaching-to-the-test circumstance at Irwin just like every other CMS school. If you don't like subjecting your kids to one standardized test after the other then a private school may be a better option.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2015

I have children attending Irwin Academic Center and had children attend it's predecessor school, Villa Heights Academic Center. The new principal Ms. Ashford is excellent and listens to the concerns of parents. I highly recommend this school and the many wonderful, concerned teachers who work there.
Submitted by parent on April 30, 2014

This is one of the best public schools. They do a very good job focusing on education and preparing my child. He has made good friends here. Very few behavior issues. It has always had a strong pta from the beginning.
Submitted by parent on December 05, 2013

As a parent of children at Irwin Academic Center, I was drawn to this school for its reputation for excellence as well as the positive and welcoming atmosphere for parents and students. The teachers are wonderful, and really care about the success of my children as well as the other students. However, I do agree with the other parents in that the administrative leadership of the school has lost sight of the mission of the school as a whole and how to facilitate a caring, creative, and innovative school culture for learning. It is apparent in the unhappiness of the staff and the hostility of the new leadership that the positive qualities of Irwin are in jeopardy. I do hope that Irwin maintains its excellent reputation and school culture and retains the high quality teachers that are currently there.
Submitted by parent on November 20, 2013

My son has been with this school (and Villa Heights as its previous location) since Kindergarten, and he is now in 5th grade. Overall he has had an excellent educational experience due to the awesome and dedicated teachers. If he'd been in a typical elementary school, he would have been bored to tears and probably disruptive. However I am concerned about the new leadership (principal and vice principal). I'm not sure they really "get it" in terms of what the school is. So far my concerns have been met with complete disinterest by the new leaders. I had honestly hoped for better than Mr. LeGrand, but Shirley and Matthews are actually making him look very good by comparison. These two need to be more in touch with the parents and their concerns, or I fear this wonderful school will lose its glory in the future. For the sake of the kids, I really hope not.
Submitted by parent on May 03, 2013

Irwin Academic Center is a great place for gifted children. My third-grade daughter is kept challenged without getting overwhelmed or burned out. The teachers and school keep parents constantly informed about their children's progress and school happenings. The teachers seem to get alot of support from administraion and truely seem to love teaching. The school allows students to bring their own technology to class and use the school's wi-fi for class projects and research. My daughter's teacher mixes in fun activities after stressful activities (like tests) to keep the kids in a good mood. My only complaint would be the after-school care coordinator who seems to be sick of her job and being around children. Luckily her support staff compensate for this. If you have a child that is bored and not challenged at their current school, I would definitely recommend trying to get into this magnet school.
Submitted by parent on March 25, 2013

I have a Kindergartner, 3rd grader in the TD program and a 5th grader in the TD program at Irwin. All of the teachers my children have had have all been amazing. The curriculum is rigorous and our extra curricular activities have suffered because of the additional 45 minutes CMS added to the school day as well as the long commute to and from school. Over all, IAC is wonderful and we feel very fortunate to be part of this school community.
Submitted by parent on February 13, 2013

Irwin Academic Center (IAC) is by far one of the best magnet schools in greater Charlotte and surrounding counties. No wonder it is ranked at 99th percentile by NC dept of Education compared to other Charter and private schools in & around Charlotte. Our child was earlier attending a private school and we feel we have wasted thousands of $ in comparison to IAC. Teachers are very knowledgeable and EXTRA talented. The curriculum is quite challenging and the leadership qualities of the principal, PTA & school staff is worth applauding. They make learning so much fun and interesting with field trips, hands on experience with science, math, arts even at elementary school level and our child enjoys this school very very much. The extra curricular clubs like chess, language, puzzles, Lego clubs, science, math clubs/Olympiads, girls on the run etc are just a few to mention of the many activities that make this school's learning environment extra ordinary and well above PAR. We are very pleased with the results we have been noticing in our child. My child LOVES LOVES school. We as parents cannot emphasize more on how great this school is! We definitely recommend this school to any parent!
Submitted by parent on October 29, 2012

Love it here. It is a magnet program for children who need more challenging work or are excelling above peers; the only issue is that there are lots of children enrolled who don't meet this criteria, despite the school communicating clearly before you apply to the lottery about it's mission. In our Kindergarten class, the teacher has estimated that 25% of the children are at the appropriate level for the school, the remaining 75% are not, so she hasn't yet had time to focus on the higher achievers...she has to spend her time resources on the majority of class. However, she plans to find more challenging work for those who would enjoy that, so we'll see how the remainder of the academic term goes.
Submitted by parent on July 23, 2012

The new school building is located in the heart of Charlotte (Uptown) and is one of the BEST schools in the city for various reasons.This school is absolutely fantastic with challenging curriculum and strong leadership qualities that every parent envisions for their children. The school environment is very well disciplined and the teachers are so talented. Homework and projects even in kindergarten are quite creative & challenging for the kids and bring the best out of their abilities. The assignments/projects and even day to day homework make the children think and understand the subject or concept as an entity. I have seen a tremendous improvement in my child's academics. We as parents are absolutely happy and truly thankful to all those staff members for their exquisite teamwork and the principal & teachers who make this school as one of the Top notch schools in Charlotte metropolitan area. I would HIGHLY recommend this school to any one parent wants to send their kids to a challenging and stimulating environment. This school and its outstanding curriculum is going to turn your average kid into one of the smartest ones and you will NOT be disappointed.
Submitted by parent on March 17, 2012

While not a school for every child, it is an outstanding environment for the high-achieving child. The pace is fast, the curriculum is engaging, the teachers are well-trained, enthusiastic, and kind. The administrative and PTA leadership are all you could hope for- highly competent and motivated. We love this school.
Submitted by other on March 16, 2012

This school has doubled in size this year and with all of the changes that have taken place I feel that the rigorous program has still continued. The parent and teacher involvement in this school is incomparable to any other school I have seen. They offer a very fast paced curriculum for high achieving students. If you child is not a fast learner or gifted, they may seriously struggle in this environment. I've seen it happen to many. Gifted children really excel at this school!