John Baldwin Elementary School

741 Brookside Drive

School District

San Ramon Valley Unified
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:19
Type

public

School Map for San Ramon Valley Unified 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 August 29, 2021

We're very happy with Baldwin. The principal, Mr Romanga, is taking great care of the kids, keeps strong teachers and helps any family who needs assistance. We have three kids at the school right now and it is our third year with the school. We're happy we're sending our kids here.
Submitted by parent on April 08, 2017

JB is an excellent school community! My child attended here TK last year before enrolling in her home school for Kinder this year. The school provides plenty of opportunities for parent involvement which is a plus. The library is one of the school's many strengths. It had more volumes than one would expect in a typical ES school and the books are in excellent shape due to a patent-funded library book fund that is seperate from the Cougar Fund. Mrs. C is an outstanding teacher who did a commendable job of preparing our "special someone" for Kindergarten! The one negative is the out-of-control class sizes at this school and in SRV Unified as a whole.
Submitted by parent on August 25, 2016

Another year with JB. We are in our 5th year here and attended back-to-school night last night. No surprises, more spoiled teaching staff that pawns off their students for HOURS per day, between them being out for PE, "Wacky Wednesday", library, science, art, music, computer, etc., yet they can't stand "yard duty" as they require volunteers, they can't stuff envelopes, they rely upon volunteers to grade their papers and send books home, the whole thing is absurd. These are teachers that are paid twice the salary and very often it feels like they put in half the effort of any teacher in Concord, Oakland, or San Jose. We heard our new teacher say, "do you expect me to grade papers on Saturday?" out loud! Don't get me wrong, there are a few good ones, but they are few and far between.There are multiple "teacher shares" at different grade levels to appease the teachers. Having lived through this in the past, this is not ideal nor conducive to the great environment they are attempting to rebuild for these young children.
Submitted by other on January 15, 2015

Worst school ever (former student now in high school) I constantly got in trouble even though I was the victim because most of the staff are extremely biased to kids they like and once they make up there mind they don't care what the other person has to say for example one time some kids were pushing me and after the 4th time I pushed back and the second I did the teachers took me to the office for causing problems and I told the principal and she said oh so is the teacher lying and I said no she probably just didn't see what happens that just made the principal mad and I got in trouble for defending myself the bottom line is that JB is a horrible school
Submitted by parent on June 13, 2014

We have enjoyed Baldwin for the past two years and look forward to another great year in 2014-2015. Our teachers have been kind, effective, hard-working, and very responsive. My children have had many opportunities to participate beyond just classroom learning. Breakfast Book Club, Math Olympiads, Intramural Sports, Online Newspaper, Debate, 3D Printer Class...to name just a few ;-). Most of these extra curricular activities are run by parent volunteers, for whom I am very grateful. I am proud of our school and devote myself to be a part of the Baldwin community.
Submitted by parent on June 12, 2014

The administration at JB is lacking. The staff seems disorganized and absent. The communication is irregular, often last minute, and lacking. I am not impressed with this school. We had a scare this year with graffiti and a very specific threat w/in the school district. There was similar copy-cat behavior on our campus and the principle urged the parents to ignore it and send their kids to school promising that there is a robust system in place to ensure our children's safety. Any adult can walk onto campus as kids play on the playground. It is fenced with a waist high fence that provides nothing more than a nuisance if one were inclined to walk on the grass. I have been to the campus about 4-6 times over the entire school year. Two times I stopped in the office to see if I needed to "check-in" and was told it was unnecessary each time (once before the incident, once after). The office did not know who I was and they went ahead and allowed me to roam campus as I pleased - no one has ever stopped to questions me. My opinion is that the administration will provide lip-service on safety as they have never once enforced anything.
Submitted by parent on December 19, 2013

I have hesitated to post a review until I have had sufficient time to really make an informed post. My children have been a part of this school community for a number of years now and I am constantly amazed by the community of parents, the commitment and dedication of our teaching staff, and the quality of our leadership. Our Cougar Education Fund does an outstanding job raising needed funds for our art, science and technology departments. Our PTA has built a community unlike anything I have seen elsewhere. Our office staff is professional and responsible for the safety and wellbeing of our children. Our principal is always available to assist parents, children and teachers where necessary and leads our school with a clear vision. Every school, whether private or public, has room for improvement, of course, but in my experience with two very different children I have found the right fit. I am honored to be a part of this community and always feel to welcome to volunteer where I can. Test scores are important and a good starting point when researching various schools but it wasn't the only criteria for me. The classroom dynamics I have witnessed and teachers are outstanding
Submitted by parent on April 08, 2013

The office staff and principal aren't very welcoming and don't add to a community feeling. The PTA is like a big clique. Teachers are a hit or miss. It would be nice if the teachers could recognize individual needs of students and not make everyone in the class proceed at the same pace. Nice location, needs more security.
Submitted by parent on November 15, 2011

I have two children at John Baldwin and I have found the teachers in multiple grades to be excellent. There has been investment in computers as well as the arts so that the kids are getting a well rounded education.