Short Avenue Elementary School

12814 Maxella Avenue

School District

Los Angeles Unified
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:18
Type

public

School Map for Los Angeles 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 March 06, 2023

We entered midyear while we are applying to private schools and I must say that this school has us reconsidering as the entire community of admin, the Principal, all teachers here are so incredible. The kids are all so welcoming of one another and the parents show kindness to one another. This is a lovely neighborhood school, not on major streets, they have a free little library in the front and the IB program is what I saw when I was growing up, living on the East Coast. This is a gem of a school under the LAUSD umbrella. I only wish the middle school in our district was as wonderful. It isn't, so this is why we're shopping private.
Submitted by parent on April 02, 2021

This is a very, very SPECIAL, hidden gem, a lovely, small, caring, neighborhood school that has a good community of parents, great teachers, staff and librarian, a beyond AMAZING principal; Karen Reynolds that makes all the difference, because of her, teachers and community, Short just became an International Baccalaureate school, my son Rubens did the TK with the very special, calm and caring Evette Hohman, because of the pandemic last year we switched to online and Hohman was managing to keep those young five year old interested and engaged online. Now he is doing kindergarten online with Carly Hammack who is also managing the hard task to keep the young kindergarteners interested in learning and entertained in this very difficult time. Don't mind the school ratings, I've learned at Short that it doesn't mean anything, if you choose Short your child will have an outstanding education with one of a kind school and principal, I've toured over 15 schools, public and private and Karen was the most special principal that I've met. When she arrived at Short, she changed the game. Don't think twice.
Submitted by parent on February 12, 2021

Short Ave is a hidden gem on the Westside! You can’t judge a school by it’s rating. They have teachers who truly care about the students and who get to know the families. The principal, Karen Reynolds, knows every student by name! She really cares about the school and everyone in it. There is a real sense of community at this school and it’s so refreshing! Short recently became an International Baccalaureate school and the teaching process that goes along with that is amazing! It’s inclusive and empowering.
Submitted by parent on January 21, 2020

We are so happy and feel very lucky to be in the short community and really feel that changing schools has made all the difference for our child.
Submitted by parent on October 22, 2019

So far, a 5 out of 5.
Submitted by parent on March 31, 2019

Excellent. This school is truly a hidden neighborhood gem. The teachers and wonderful, the principal is fantastic. We feel so lucky that this is our local school!
Submitted by parent on June 04, 2018

We are very happy to have our son at Short. He is participating at Mr. Schieneman's Scouts (former Boy Scouts) going camping, exploring LA and having good old fashion fun at Den's Meetings/ Mr. Schieneman is a 4th grade teacher who also does spelling bee competition.We enjoy the international day organized by Short- and potluck style get together with many international dishes (Ethiopian, Russian, Mexican, Finish, German, Spanish....American). Kids dress up in costumes, explore their heritage, bring family mementos which are later displayed at the library. I highly recommend our school to all community families. We could not have been happier!Principal Ms. Renolds
Submitted by parent on November 24, 2017

Transferred from a Charter School where my child languished. Decided to try Public school and met with the Principal and his teachers who spent a lot of time listening to our concerns and reassured us that Short was the place for him. They were so right. The teachers normalize a child's behavior rather then make the child or parent feel incompetent. They worked with us to critique our child's behavior and his educational experience. They asked for suggestions to assist in his growth, and loved that we cared so much about our child that we wanted to engage with the school. They spent at least 60 minutes on the end of the semester review ( only 15 minutes at the Charter) giving us good feedback. The campus is beautiful at Short and there are so many activities for the families its hard to keep track of them all. The Principal is so accessible, caring and honest. This is one wonderful public school with experienced teachers, kind parents and a community that is building around the goal of our children's growth. So happy our family found Short Elementary . My child loves going to school, says his teachers are not "mean" anymore, and is growing emotionally as well as educationally. What more can a family ask for?
Submitted by parent on April 03, 2017

I have toured the school as a prospective parent. The parents community ,teachers and current principal are excellent. I have decided to go with a language immersion program at a different school but I truly believe that under the guidance of the current principal this school will get 10 out of 10 within a year or two.
Submitted by parent on March 05, 2017

This school is the best. Great for the neighborhood. Theyhave so many different programs going on all the time and my children have so much fun everday. The staff is awesome. My kids are the third generation to go to this school.
Submitted by parent on February 01, 2017

Nothing but superb! With classes and clubs for all students TK-6 in Coding with Planet Bravo, Theatre, Visual Arts, Thespian, Chorus, Latin, Lego, Chess, Zumba, PE, Ballroom Dancing, and in class cooking (I'm sure I'm forgetting some) who could ask for more in a neighborhood school. There are a ton of fun events too.. Field Trips, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Carnival, Dolphin Cafés, International Day, Scripps National Spelling Bee, Silent Auction, STEAM nights, In N Out burger truck night, Pajama Day and night with teachers reading stories at Barnes & Noble, Winternational with visits from LAPD Santa, Career Day, Food Truck Nights, Family School Dance, Movie Nights, Halloween Parade, School-wide Science Mania Fair, Winter and Spring Concerts. Award winners in National Spelling Bees, LA Latino App Challenge, 5th Grade Ballroom Dancing, Los Angeles Bookmark Contest have all emerged from our school... the list goes on, but I think you get the point. This is a hidden gem of a school. A real rarity these days. How lucky we are!!
Submitted by parent on January 30, 2017

This is our third year at Short and we could not be happier! Our child has such pride in his school and loves to be involved in all sorts of activities. He has made some tremendous friends here and so have we. I am extremely pleased inches academic performance. He is excelling! Teachers, principal, staff are caring and nurturing.
Submitted by parent on January 26, 2017

I am so glad to let my child study at Short Avenue Elementary School. They serve warm breakfasts every morning, let them access to various kinds of books and materials, good programs for enhansing computer literacy, and amazingly they teach Latin (my kid loves learning this language)!
Submitted by parent on January 26, 2017

I am a big fan of Short Avenue Elementary, as are both of our kids. It is a large enough school with a giant yard and all the extra programs, yet the teachers and principal actually know all the students. Principal Reynolds usually greets all the students at the gate by name in the mornings! Also, I love it when my kindergartner comes home and tries to speak the latin she learned at school to us.
Submitted by parent on January 26, 2017

We love this school. The parents, teachers, and principal are a super dedicated group. My son is getting a rich and well-rounded education. My hope is that my daughter who just started kindergarten will enjoy academics the same way my son has. From the way she finishes her entire weekly packet of homework in one day, I think she is. :)
Submitted by parent on January 24, 2017

Short Ave. is a great school. I love the since of community and parent involvement. The kids seem happy to go there. Short Ave. is a small school so everyone knows everybody. the teachers are amazing they really care.
Submitted by parent on January 23, 2017

Amazing school, with great teachers and a very proactive new principal!
Submitted by parent on November 05, 2016

The teachers are wonderful and the new principal, Karen Reynolds, is amazing! Ms. Reynolds cares so much about the children, her families and her staff. She is so extremely dedicated. We are so lucky to have her here. This is such a great neighborhood school and it is just getting better and better under her leadership!
Submitted by parent on November 02, 2016

Large class sizes, burned out teachers, sub-par instruction, lack of communication from teachers to parents and overall failure to teach basic reading, writing, and math skills.
Submitted by parent on May 05, 2016

Great school, we love to see great things they do at school every day. Lucky to be at this school.