St. James Episcopal School

625 South Saint Andrews Place

Los Angeles, CA 90005

15 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-6
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on November 20, 2021

St. James' offers an excellent academic offering. The school works hard to create a respectful culture of kindness that resonates with the students and teachers. It is a rare gem tucked away in Korea town smack in the middle of the hustle of Los Angeles.
Submitted by parent on November 18, 2021

As a St. James parent, I cannot say enough wonderful things about the school. My daughter is able to attend a diverse, socially conscious and progressive school, while at the same time receiving a strong academic foundation. She is reading at a 6th grade level in the 2nd grade; she comes home excited to tell me about the different scientists she is learning about (including Albert Einstein and Marie Curie); she corrects my pronunciation of spanish words. In addition to the strong academics, she is participating in the school musical and also receiving a great socio-emotional education. I am so appreciative to have this school during these unprecedented times. St. James has kept my daughter academically engaged as well as secure in her community connection.
Submitted by parent on November 17, 2021

As a parent, every box I could possibly hope for in a school is checked. It's a truly diverse and caring community; it has outstanding academic credentials backed up by its matriculation record; there's a wide range of extra-curricula activities that enhance the kids' experience; the school handled the Covid crisis better than anyone thought possible - a testament to the admin and teaching staff; and most of all, with its emphasis on civic responsibility, the school helps the children to develop into the best versions of themselves - kind, thoughtful and engaged with the world.
Submitted by parent on March 14, 2018

School overall is good but the classrooms are now very sterile. New rules were put into effect this year that allows art, kids work, etc to only reside on small areas of the walls. So instead of cozy, art filled classrooms, the rooms are more like a hospital. Kids don't like it, teachers don't like it, parents don't like it. Not sure of the philosophy behind it.
Submitted by parent on October 12, 2017

Speaking as the parent of a 5th grader, this school has been great! The teachers have all been good, and some (looking at you 4th grade teachers) have been exceptional! There is a wide variety of extracurricular options. The diversity is off the charts, providing kids exposure to a broad spectrum of cultures, food, and fun. The kids are generally well-behaved and well-spoken. Parental involvement is high, which leads to a strong sense of community. We would recommend this school to our friends and family.
Submitted by parent on May 31, 2016

Pros - Genuinely great kids- pretty good families (though they can be slightly cliquish)- Preschool (caveat the first con)- Dedicated teachersCons- There appears to be a significant level of discord in the administration which works its way down to the children from time to time. The very popular head of the preschool was fired in the middle of the school year on the eve of a long weekend with no credible explanation. This was obviously very disruptive to the children. - The upper school lacks a contemporary pedological philosophy. If you liked the rote learning of your youth, I suppose this might be a pro.
Submitted by parent on June 15, 2015

Like the person below, my husband and I just went through the Kindergarten admissions process for the coming academic year (2015-2016). Our experience was very different. The school was totally upfront that they would not have a lot of spaces available - we heard this from the Admissions team, Headmistress and several current parents during our initial tour. At the start of our tour of the school the Head of Admissions mentioned they had limited spaces; at the end of our initial tour, we let the Admissions team know that St James is our absolute first choice school: in response to this the Head of Admissions point blank told us that we should submit an application if we wanted to but warned us that there would be a very limited number of places available this year. Before our son's playdate the Admissions team once again mentioned (to the whole group of parents) there would be limited spaces available this year AND the current parents at my table mentioned they thought there would only be “a handful of spaces”. The Admissions team went so far as to say “even if St James is your first choice school, we encourage you to have a strong back up as we know this year there will be families that we want to accept but won’t have the space to”. From the get go we knew - and were constantly reminded! - that spaces were going to be limited. We went through the admissions process regardless and hoped for the best - luckily, we were offered (and instantly accepted!) one of the “handful of spaces" available for Kindergarten 2015-2016. We are not related to the school in any way - both my husband and I are from out of town, our son is the eldest (so no older siblings at the school) and no-one from my family goes to the pre-school. We feel very lucky - we know this year there were dozens of qualified families that the school wanted to hand places to but weren’t able to.
Submitted by parent on September 20, 2013

I love this school! It has everything our daughter needs for her elementary school education. The teachers are kind and caring, the curriculum is rigorous and engaging, and the parent community is beyond compare. There are always people out there that find fault, but you'll be hard pressed to find a school that's as warm, nurturing, academically enriching, and well run as St. James'.
Submitted by other on September 19, 2013

Ask any hakwon (only because hakwons are exposed to so many kids attending different schools public and private. I am not endorsing hakwons). St. James while looking bright and pretty is academically weak. Little rigor, hence low ICEE scores, fear under the guise of esteem building replaces grit, and the school is plagued by weird racial tension (they still preach color blindness circa 1986). Though they put on a good show, they are behind in methodology, their focus being money. They see the child as a customer and the customer is always right. As a parent, I want my child to be challenged and guided, not told s/he is right. My advice save your money and send your child to a charter school. It s a good moment for the charter school system; pedagogy, rigor, and differentiation are en vogue.
Submitted by parent on February 18, 2013

We have a first grader at St. James. St. James is a wonderful, safe, kind, academically challenging (age, individually appropriate there are plenty of children who are challenged in some way and the school fully supports and aids them to the best of their ability). We looked at several schools in Los Angeles and St. James came out number one on our list for many reasons--check out the awesome science, art, computer labs! It has superb leadership, dedicated teachers, active and supportive parents and delightful children. It truly is "the face of LA" as someone said below. It's very special in that it's an inner city private school so to speak so the student body is truly diverse. I have never seen any bullying. Ever. We love it and feel so lucky to have our child there.
Submitted by parent on October 29, 2012

Our daughter has been at St James since Kindergarten and is currently in Third Grade. St James is like an extended family. It is warm, nurturing and academically rigorous. The student population and faculty are also extremely diverse and represent the face of LA. We are a Jewish family and feel totally embraced. The religious aspect of the school is not dogmatic, but teaches a broad humanity which is lived every day. I cannot understand the comment about bullying below as I have found the children at St James to be very kind and caring. The older kids look out for the younger ones and children transferring into later grades are warmly welcomed and fit right in. The Head of School Debbie David is a power house and Angela Arrington the Vice Principal is also dynamic. I highly recommend St James. Our daughter is very happy there.
Submitted by parent on October 26, 2012

St James is best school in LA. Let me start by saying my son is a gifted child. He was accepted in Mirman, WNS, John Thomas Dye, and Willow. My wife and I choose St James because of the schools academic rigor, religious/social balance, and real world demographic mix. Based on those three criteria, St James is the only school in LA that checks all the boxes. This is my son s second year at St James and we couldn't be happier. His schoolwork is challenging (as we expected), he is gaining an understanding of religion, and his friends are of all races. Lastly, I have to say the kids at St James are happy. I'm on campus everyday, and all I see are lots of smiling faces. I can t wait till my daughters a little older so she can go to St James too :o)
Submitted by parent on June 07, 2012

St. James' is a small school with a BIG problem - bullying. For years administration has ignored this problem, especially if the bullies are the children of the affluent and big financial donors to the school. For obvious reasons administration has stuck their heads in the sand when it comes to this growing problem in the St. James' community, while the bullies are running a muck. I think that the parents of these children know that their kids have a serious social problem, but they also know that the school needs money, their money. In the meantime bullying is a rampant problem and administration does not want to confront the problem or the parents of the problem. Money talks at St. James . The bullying includes both physical and verbal attacks. This is a problem that seriously needs to be addressed and the school needs to take a stand against the bullies no matter who their parents are.
Submitted by parent on January 04, 2012

Thank you Saint James. We have a happy well rounded eager learner. The school is an academic school with a warm heart. The parent community is open and inviting and as diverse as they come. We are so happy we found St. James and can only hope that our child's education in the future can compare.
Submitted by parent on January 04, 2012

We are very happy at St. James'. It is a great mix of strong academics and the fun classes like art and music and computer lab. We are a non-religious family and are happy that our daughter is getting exposure to a strong moral education in a liberal and inclusive (not dogmatic) environment.