Pacific Elementary School

50 Ocean Street

School District

Pacific Elementary
Grade

K-6
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:21
Type

public

School Map for Pacific Elementary 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 April 17, 2024

Pacific Elementary School is understanding of the individual needs of my children. They are incredibly patient with the children & pretty much custom fit a curriculum most efficient for educating a child while maintaining their emotional well-being.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2024

We have been so happy with Pacific. What a special and unique school. It has so much heart. It's obvious that everyone here loves working at this school. The teachers care dearly, the principal is very engaged with and knows every student, the front office staff and extremely warm and caring, and the kids definitely all feel like one community. I LOVE how small it is. Definitely my top perk. The food lab program is just amazing and the food is really delicious. They also accommodate dietary restrictions. They work with local farms too to compost all food scraps. Older kids helps prepare meals and younger ones work in the garden. One of our kids has mental health and social/emotional challenges and we have had a great experience creating a 504 plan for her. Her teacher is trauma-informed and really looks out for her. The kinder teachers are just outstanding--very patient and supportive while also maintaining a peaceful and cooperative environment. We drive 30 minutes each way to get to Pacific and it's totally worth it. Also, there's a free city bus a lot of the kids ride together from the West Side, so that can save a lot of commuting time. Pacific is well worth the extra time to get there and we plan to stay for both kids to graduate through 6th grade.
Submitted by parent on April 07, 2023

For our family Pacific has been and continues to be a gem and an absolute joy. Our child enjoys the small class size where any behavior or academic issues can be addressed appropriately. Counseling by an amazing supportive and empathic psychologist is highly valued as we come off of all the deficiencies of an overburdened post pandemic time in our family and overall society. We were initially drawn to Pacific by the Food Lab where upper grade kids learn kitchen skills with an amazing chef cooking healthy food. Once there, we were blown away by kids opening the gate for one another and parents, the kindness you see daily, the integrity that rubs off on all that attend. We have an older child who attended a larger elementary school and watching effective leadership from the principal to the teachers and yard duty staff, everyone just being a good guy is an amazing feeling to leave your child with every day. Our child loves attending and learning, even though they are held accountable to sometimes questionable behaviors but are always spoken to kindly and thoroughly to make sure they understand their behavior and how they might do better, that they are better. Amazing teachers in every grade~for us this school is so very much worth the effort to be there!
Submitted by parent on March 18, 2023

Poor leadership, big teacher turn over, inexperienced teachers and teachers who couldn’t be hired anywhere else. Not a safe place for kids of color or transgender.
Submitted by parent on March 12, 2023

Pacific Elementary School/District has been a respite for our family from the one-size-fits-most approach of many schools. Pacific is different in a good way. Small class sizes but big on community, which is diverse and supportive. The several educational options -- 5-day traditional, 3-day hybrid independent study with outdoor educational component, and home study with dedicated resource teacher -- mean there's a fit for almost anyone. We have loved the flexibility of the hybrid IS program, which is no longer parent led, but is a wonderful blend of classroom teaching M/T/Th, flexible Wednesdays to learn as we like and pursue personal interests, and a Friday field trip for more experiential and nature-based learning as a group. Meaningful pandemic measures like classroom filter upgrades, time spent handwashing, 2x weekly optional onsite testing, free rapid tests and masks, etc. allowed our family with respiratory health issues and immunocompromise to mitigate risk and safely participate in public school when our home district couldn't or wouldn't reasonably accommodate. And have you heard about the award-winning Life & Food Labs?!? By far the best kept secrets around with an educational living garden program and hot, farm-to-table lunches (plus breakfast snack) prepared by the amazing Ms. Emelia & Violy plus 5th and 6th grade students themselves. This school and principal/superintendent actively partners with parents and the larger community to fulfill the promise of a public school that sees and supports each individual student and family. Our kids went from refusing to attend school to thriving. Interdistrict transfers welcome. Come take a tour and see for yourself. Just make sure you're there for lunch!
Submitted by parent on August 19, 2016

Pacific School's Independent Study program is a fantastic hybrid between public school and homeschooling. Parents volunteer weekly in the 3 day per week class, and there are high quality field trips most Fridays. With very small class size, students are engaged and participating. As do the regular 5 day per week students, Independent Study students participate in Life Lab, Food Lab, and music programs. I feel so fortunate to have stumbled into this amazing community of families and stellar educational environment for my children.
Submitted by parent on August 19, 2016

There are only a few schools in the area that truly have a small school feeling. Pacific School is one of them. This school has so much more to offer than small class sizes and aides in every class. For over 30 years the FoodLab program has been cooking up freshly prepared meals where students help prepare the meal. Garden classes are taught weekly as well as music lessons, orchestra and choir. To round out the greatness the technology lab engages upper grade students.It is the staff and parents that make it happen.