St Helen Catholic School

2700 East University Avenue

Georgetown, TX 78626

23 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-8
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on May 25, 2021

We have had children at this school since 2012 and we have been very pleased with how well our children were prepared for High School and college both intellectually and spiritually. Socially, as with any school, there are a few bullies in every class. My children worked though it, learned how to stand up for themselves and built upon the tough experiences and channeled them into something positive. Socially, changing from a small class with 20ish kids to a class with 300, there is an adjustment period, the social dynamic is very different.Our eldest daughter is currently at A&M starting her sophomore year (was an auto admin and is in the engineering honors program) (she lettered in Robotics in High School and graduated 11th out of 272 kids) Our son is a current sophomore at Liberty Hill High School (has lettered in Robotics, Fishing and Tennis) and our youngest is finishing 2nd at St. Helen Catholic School. This program has done an excellent job teaching our children how to think for themselves, ask questions, speak publicly, push themselves academically, and has helped provide confidence in their religious beliefs and further strengthened their moral backbones. For us, this program is worth the commute from Liberty Hill to St. Helen in Georgetown. We look forward to our 8 year old growing in her faith and excelling academically as her older siblings have. I would recommend to children going from 8th grade to High School, that they get involved in school activities and clubs. It will help a big school feel small and not so overwhelming.
Submitted by other on September 16, 2020

I'm not going to "sugar coat" anything: My experience at St. Helens was awful. The social atmosphere was horrible –– you had to pretend to be everyone's friend, or else you'd offend everyone, the bullying was nonstop for months, and even though it's labelled as a Catholic school, I never felt God's presence at that school. Most everyone there was so hateful, which is really sad, because there were several staff members who were so kind. Of course, everyone has different experiences, so I do hope that people had more positive experiences at St. Helens than I did. But, I have talked to people who have graduated from St. Helens, and they all agree that the social atmosphere at St. Helens was horrible.
Submitted by other on December 09, 2018

Please, for your child’s mental health, do not send them here.
Submitted by parent on August 11, 2017

Small with a home feel. The principal is very well educated and well-read and truly focuses on the best interest of the student. Reading and academics aren't all that matter. Children need to be children and learn social skills that will far benefit them in life. Reading will come and so will homework and math skills. What children need are the skills to learn how to learn and the social skills to make them well-liked, appreciative, and hard-working. This is what being at a school like St. Helen's is about.
Submitted by parent on October 22, 2016

St. Helen's is an exceptional school. We have been at SHCS for 4 years and my two children and I love everything about it - the teachers, staff, creative learning, discipline, caring, love, and the challenge are only a few of the things that make SHCS an oustanding school. Our children are excelling not only academically but spiritually. They love going to school and are eager to tell us about their day when we pick them up in the afternoon. They receive an high-standard quality education from dedicated teachers, small classes, and plenty of extracurricular activities. They are held to a high, but attainable, standard of behavior and respect for classmates without exception. Accessibility and commitment of the teachers is absolutely outstanding. Academically, SHCS excels. Our Principal has an open-door policy, is fun but strong, fair and open-minded, very forward looking, ensures the safety of our children and helps advance our students. We love the various points of engagement among classes from Mass & Class Buddies, along with family, and school events. As a parent, I feel my input is valued and that I belong to a great community raising a spiritual, kind, service oriented and technologically advanced generation. I feel very blessed to have my sons attend SHCS. St. Helen's has been our partner in giving our sons a great education and bringing out the best in them!
Submitted by parent on October 21, 2016

We had to leave St. Helen Catholic School due to academic and school policy concerns. The principal has implemented a closed-campus policy which restricts parents access to the school. This has severely limited interaction with the teachers and has created a very cold and uninviting environment. In touring other area private schools we have found this policy to be unique to SHCS and counter to the family environment embraced by other schools. Our academic concerns were validated while touring these other schools as well. We learned that SHCS academic standards were not as high as other area private schools. For example, the Pre-K students at these schools had the ability to read by the time they entered kindergarten, a skill that SHCS only starts to teach once the student enters kindergarten. This is because SHCS only teaches to the Texas minimum academic standards (TEKS). We have found that what you get at St Helen Catholic School is a public school education in a Catholic environment.
Submitted by parent on September 09, 2016

Our son is getting the best education here. The Teachers and Principal are wonderful. We have been with St. Helen's from 1st-3rd grade so far. The school runs academic programs at least half a school year ahead of the local public schools.
Submitted by other on November 02, 2015

Save yourself and your child the time and look elsewhere. New principal not only has no principalship experience but is from the military. That combined with hyper focus on overloading busy work for homework... don't believe their mission statement of educating the "whole child". They do not provide a safe, interesting, positive, or Christ like environment. In fact our child thought the kids in public school were kinder and that teachers here cared less!
Submitted by parent on February 13, 2015

We love this school! There seems to have been some negative talk and reviews floating around recently, and we just want to say that all places have their issues, so we look at what the school provides, not what some people do or do not like about a particular school. What does this school provide? An excellent academic program, training in study skills and critical thinking skills, nice facilities (especially the new gym!), a fun sports program, academic competition opportunities, modern technological teaching methods, a safe environment, and kind, friendly, helpful staff. That being said, none of those are the most important to us! The most important thing, and what will keep us here regardless of the free educational opportunities offered elsewhere, is that our children our developing into wonderful, responsible, Christian people. They learn and live the values and virtues of Jesus at SHCS. (even if there are some students who do not) They get to experience the presence of Christ in their school life - this is why our money, and yes sacrifices, are worth it - and why we are excited to stay. Thank you teachers and staff!
Submitted by parent on September 22, 2013

St Helen, like any school, is not perfect. Schools are challenged with constantly keeping up with the very best in education. We know, we've tried a couple in this area and beyond. And none of them measure up to St. Helen Catholic School. 93% Of the students at St Helen test at or ABOVE average in national standardized testing! What other school does that? If fact, 2 (two) St. Helen graduates recently took Valedictorian honors and 2 SEPARATE schools in the area! Don't mistake academia for money - this is not a rich kids' school - MANY families receive financial aid. It is indeed, a Catholic school so Christian values are incorporated into every aspect of the students' education, from curriculum, to recess, to lunch and sports. So what are the down sides you ask? There are a couple middle school issues (teacher, programming) that need to be addressed, but the administration is aware and they are working on this. One thing is for sure: Your child will have core values on which to stand, a solid education, and a well rounded perspective when they leave here.
Submitted by parent on March 19, 2013

The negative reviews are very interesting reading indeed. I cannot say that I have had the same experience at all. My kids are still in the lower grades, oldest is in 3rd. We have been at the school for 4 years and have been very impressed with how well our kids are doing and how much they enjoy the school. The ONLY negative that I can point out is not so much a fault of the school. There is only 1 class per grade. This has advantages and disadvantages. Everybody knows each other, including the parents and this can be a big plus. But if a child has difficulty with a classmate, it can be hard for them to "move on" and find other friends. Is this limitation in social opportunity a big deal? I don't know but with a 3rd grader just entering the years of playground politics, I wonder. I can see where there are some cliques of parents but why should I care? It's the same everywhere, I don't send my kids to school for my social benefit, and I certainly haven't seen groups of adult friends acting overly exclusionary or snobbish. By and large I find everybody, especially including the faculty and staff, to be extremely approachable, receptive and friendly.
Submitted by parent on March 09, 2013

For a private school I expected higher academic standards. Sometimes my child had a very good teacher, but more than one teacher should not have been teaching. Our concerns as parents regarding the quality of some of the teachers were shuffled aside by the principal as irrelevant. The last few years have been very disappointing, no better and sometimes worse than public school. We kept our child at St. Helen mostly for the friendships, and sometimes we wonder if it would have been better for our child's social and intellectual development to have switched to public school several years ago. As far as spiritual development is concerned, there is the appropriate emphasis one would expect in a Catholic school. But spiritual development alone will not get the kids into a good college.
Submitted by parent on December 30, 2012

Saint Helen's is a truly wonderful school. We are in our second year and I can not think of one negative. The teachers and staff show love and kindness and teach the children gospel values. Respect for others as well as yourself is what has really stood out. I am so happy to be a part of this school and am happy to say my child will be attending all the way thru 8th and know he will be carrying the love and knowledge he has learned for his entire life.
Submitted by parent on October 03, 2011

I feel like the words I choose will in no way measure up to the beauty of this school, but I will try. St. Helen is a choice we made a long time ago for our three children and it is the best decision we have ever made. I could go on and on about the quality of the teachers, staff, curriculum and Catholic standards, but those have already been well express. Our litmus test? Our three children. I have seen them shaped into compassionate, kind, respectful, honest young men and women. I will admit, at first my husband and I were not sure if the sacrifice would outweigh the benefit when it came to choosing Catholic schools for our children, but St. Helen has exceeded expectations we did not even realize were important to us until we saw them live out in our children. Not only are we sure they are prepared educationally for the world in front of them, we now know that they are more than prepared spiritually, emotionally and morally. Of course we are the first teachers of our children. St. Helen has enriched and assisted our family teachings in beautiful ways that we see come to light every day. Is it worth the sacrifice? A million times over.
Submitted by parent on July 25, 2011

This is our 7th year at SHCS, and we absolutely love it! St. Helen may not have all the extras that you can get in larger schools, but they offer a ton of extra-curriculars such as athletics, PSIA, drama, yearbook, and on and on. Academics are first-rate. Students score well on standardized tests and participate in State-level competitions. The teachers are wonderful--very approachable for the kids, and the staff is accessible and friendly. The principal is always visible, and is at practically every school event. The coaches truly work with every student who wants to participate in sports. The Catholic values that they teach are what set St. Helen apart. There are a lot of Catholic schools in the area, but St. Helen is the best mix of small-town family and big-city opportunities. The principal and the staff are CONSTANTLY finding ways to make the school even better. Truly dedicated! I would encourage anyone who is considering Catholic school for their children to check out St. Helen. I'm disappointed in the negative reviews here, knowing who wrote them and how they have their own agenda. Don't let them scare you off. Come see for yourself! You won't be disappointed.
Submitted by parent on July 13, 2011

Simply an amazing school with above average teachers and administration!! After having been in another area Catholic school for years before transferring to St. Helen, I can honestly say that St. Helen's curriculum , staff and Catholic identity is head and shoulders above anything we have seen while not only attending our previous school, but in also researching other schools. I love that the priests at St. Helen Church interact with the children daily, in everything from eating lunch with them, attending their events, and hosting ice cream parties to being very involved in their religious education.
Submitted by other on July 01, 2011

This school did not meet my academic or spiritual expectations. I think they could do a lot better with some small adjustments, but I do not know if they want to be what a Catholic school should be
Submitted by parent on April 06, 2011

St. Helens is a avearge school with alot of room for improvement. The instruction is very traditional and the curriulum is lacking. Good teachers are limited. Some years we had a good teacher. Other years, the teacher and instruction was below average. When paying for your education, teacher quality is a must.
Submitted by parent on March 02, 2011

Actually, 99% of the employees are parents (not all have had children who attended this school because they're older parents), but parents nonetheless. Our principal chose to serve God and has done so for 50 years!! She's like a mom to all. What a wonderful example to the students. As for the comment posted on February 27th - we'll keep you in our prayers!!
Submitted by parent on March 02, 2011

Please know that the unchristian reviews are coming from someone who was asked to leave because of their child's behavioral issues. The text books are NOT public school textbooks AT ALL. There is not one religious teacher in our school who would even come close to being called liberal. I am so sad for the person who feels the need to continue their attacks and don't understand while they are allowed to remain. We have all been praying for them. Bottom line, visit the school and make an informed decision.