Red Oak Elementary School

4857 Rockfield Street

School District

Oak Park Unified
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:23
Type

public

School Map for Oak Park 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 14, 2024

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this school due to significant concerns regarding its administration and leadership, particularly related to ethics, competence, and the support provided for students’ social and emotional needs. While some teachers are excellent, this is not the case for all.The school tends to focus heavily on controlling student behavior through punitive measures, often without understanding the damaging consequences or achieving meaningful results. Students are frequently labeled and accused of having bad intentions, without consideration of their developmental milestones and the skills needed to regulate their emotions at their age. There appears to be a lack of awareness regarding how the school's environment and approach negatively affect students, with a notable emphasis on blaming students and parents rather than addressing systemic issues.Our experience with the school counselor has been particularly troubling. The counselor has shown judgmental and biased behavior and demonstrated a lack of competence. While she presents a friendly demeanor to students and parents, her actions and behind-the-scenes comments have been concerning. Many parents believe that the counselor creates unnecessary issues to justify her position. Despite a formal complaint to the Oak Park District, she remains employed, and her actions have repeatedly breached the expected code of conduct for counselors.I advise parents to carefully consider these factors when evaluating the school, especially if their children require understanding and support.
Submitted by parent on August 28, 2022

We have two kids in the school and we are beyond impressed. The teachers are amazing and the principal and school district does a good job of keeping the parents in the loop.
Submitted by parent on October 02, 2019

So sad to say, but happy this is our last year. My youngest two will not attend their final years here. The counselors agenda and lack of cooperation with parents is disturbing. The test scores are high because the parents are educated and we do not have a large language or low income population. It is the families in the area and commuting in...not the school. It has sadly changed so much in four years.
Submitted by parent on August 26, 2019

My children have been so fortunate to have had an opportunity to be with the staff on campus. Each staff member truly does care and they go above and beyond to help. The school has endured many changes since my eldest first started. New curriculums, counseling, computer class, you name it! The staff has brought this community of children to a higher level of thinking. My kids are more well rounded today because they think about the earth, the school as a whole group including staff and friends, and academically, they are just smarter today then they were just a few years ago with new curriculum and less homework. It's almost too hard to explain. My kids are better people for there experience here. I can truly say this as I have older children who missed the new curriculum curves and went to another district nearby. You will be a better parent learning from your child how to treat others. It is just how they roll over here.
Submitted by parent on February 14, 2019

I have a mixed opinion of Red Oaks Elementary, so I gave it a 3-star rating. Here's why: Strengths 1. Always receives 9/10 rating from greatschools. 2. Clean, maintained campus. 3. Mostly uniform socioeconomic status of enrolled families. 4. Moderatly active parent community. Concerns 1. Despite good testscores, academics are not as strong as they should be. For instance, the school has really really big "green living/sustainable agriculture/veganism" focus, but the academic purpose behind it isn't clear. As an example, while the school designates Sustainable Gardening class as STEM education, I wasn't able to obtain a copy of class objectives or curriculum. 2. Info on student progress isn't great. Trimester progress reports are generic and fairly useless. 3. Lack of responsibility and accountability on teachers' and administration’s side. When a student fails a test not a single person at Red Oaks Elementary asks himself “What went wrong with our teaching approach ?”. Quite the opposite, teachers immediately blame the child for not trying hard enough. Some teachers go further by blaming parents for not sending children to private tutors. 4. Absence of GATE program. Even though the school does identify students as GATE by the end of the 3rd grade, there is still no advanced placement in 4th and 5th grades. The GATE identification is based ONLY on the teacher's recommendation and is an extremely biased process. That process is especially unfair to minorities, English learners, or just to any child not raised on the ideas of self-promotion. 5. Absence of meaningful consistent homework. The school has "no homework policy". 6. There is always a fundraiser or request for money and supplies. Always! I feel for the families who do not have much to give. 7. Although PTA brags about its memberships, only a handful of people ever shows up for the meetings, which to me reflects poorly on the PTA 's ability to involve its members effectively. 9. The school administration never addresses parents' concerns.
Submitted by parent on October 09, 2017

Do NOT enroll your child here if he has any issues with learning. This school will go to great lengths to avoid providing any services. We have received nothing but difficulties from the school administration. Thank goodness we got our child out of this place. Oh, and don't bother if your kid is gifted either. Apparently their GATE program doesn’t even start until the 4th grade, and all they do is provide you with a marketing brochure describing the program and email invitations to some Parenting of Gifted Students seminars @ $100/each. Your child will see no difference in classroom curriculum whatsoever.
Submitted by parent on May 15, 2017

Red Oak is a great school with exceptional teachers. My daughter who is in fourth grade right now is doing well in both academics and social skills. The homework amount is just right given that students of different levels are given tasks according to their capabilities. Thanks to the great parents who have generously volunteered their time, I have not been "forced" to work in the school at all and donations/gifts towards the school and staff have always been voluntary. My child has been in oak park district since pre-k and she definitely loves it here!
Submitted by parent on May 02, 2017

I have always loved Red Oak and it's teachers. Lately, I just don't understand some of the decisions being made. I just found out the PTA is going to drastically cut the hours of the teacher aides. I was told the aides are no longer going to be at the school during the months of August, September and May. We have gotten no explanation for this. The PTA is constantly asking for money. They always say they have exceeded their goals. This year's jog a thon made 10,000 more than last year. Why would they cut the most important thing they pay for. If these are the decisions they are making, I will not be donating anymore!
Submitted by parent on January 12, 2015

My kids are getting an amazing education at Red Oak Elementary, Media Creek Middle School & Oak Park Neighborhood School. We moved to this area because of the schools & what is offered to my children.
Submitted by other on May 20, 2014

We need to allow everybody raise their voice and we need to respect others opinion. We should not shut on the face. Everybody has choice to go other school and I don't think anybody asking opinion. We are rating this school based on individual experience. Let us allow everybody to provide valuable feedback and keep this env well professional. Thanks
Submitted by parent on March 29, 2014

To the parents who are from out of district - GO SOMEWHERE ELSE if you're not happy here - PLEASE!!! My kids would have been LAUSD and we chose happily to come to OPUSD where the teachers are amazing and the students are intellectually way above other school districts. We're now in district and love our school and our kids are learning, excelling and doing better than 99% of other schools around the country. Our teachers are over burdened with too many students, I agree, HOWEVER, our students are still way above most other schools in the country. The PFA (the same 20 volunteers out of a school of 625) sees that teachers get classroom aides, MUSIC, P.E., computer classes and more! Try going to LAUSD or other school districts and see what you get for your measly $10 donation. The only reason I gave a four is because if you have a special needs child this is NOT the district for you. If your child does not fit into the "box" go somewhere else as fast as you can. They try to help, but special needs does not ultimately help district scores, and that is all the Superintendent cares about.
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2014

This school is completely overrated! All of the hype this school district does is ridiculous. After actually being inside the school and seeing what really goes on, we are completely disappointed with the lack of quality teaching and will look elsewhere. There is NO differentiation whatsoever and the teachers have every child do the exact same thing. Our child came into first grade with very high math skills and he is forced to sit and do dittos after he finishes his work. When you ask the primary grade teachers for more challenging material for your child, they come up with excuses as to why they cannot provide it. The amount of dittos that are used are unbelievable. Our child's current teacher uses intimidation tactics to "manage" her class and she clearly likes to assert her power over the parents if they do not do what she wants. The principal is useless and seems as though he is managed by the teachers. With all of the money and parent participation this school receives, it's very disappointing to see how poorly they perform. The reason their test scores are so high is because children come in with high skills beforehand, not from the teachers doing anything special.
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2014

If you don't like Red Oak, then leave. :-) I went there back in the early 90's and now I own 2 homes and making well over $250,000 a year. So...now my kids will go there.
Submitted by other on November 28, 2013

Totally agree with the previous reviewers. OPUSD had gone way too far with the district of choice program. Classes are way over-sized. Elementary schools have 30 kids per class, middle is 35 to 40 per class and high is 40 to 50. What kinds of quality education we can talk about in this situation. The only winner in here is oversized and high inefficient OPUSD administration that enjoys a steady flow of $ from the out-of-distrci students, while Oak Park residents and especially OP kids are the one who suffer the consequences including declining quality of education, increased traffic, loss of community values and as a result loss of property value. On top of that OP residents continue to pay the parcel tax to keep the OPUSD party going. Just check how many negative reviews were posted this year about all OPUSD schools and how the test scores had dropped. But don't worry the OPUSD administration will continue to send us cheerful emails telling that things had never been better, and if there is anyone to blame for the poor performance of OPUSD schools that would be the California government and Oak Park resident who (stupid them) don't want to pay more taxes.
Submitted by parent on November 25, 2013

What can I say. I will keep it short and say NOT HAPPY. Very disappointed with all the district transfers that are allowed into this district. Where has our sense of community gone, people?! There are kids all the way from Oxnard to Woodland Hills attending our school, using fake local addresses or winning lotteries to 'get in'. This has gotten ridiculous and has diluted the quality that this school and district were known for. Kudos to Conejo USD for not selling out. Guess what? We're moving there for next year. My sons will get a true sense of community and a district that takes care of it's own for their remaining elementary years.
Submitted by parent on November 04, 2013

Because we moved to the area specifically for this school, we are now saddened to see that our expectations have not been met. Our kindergartener is jammed into a classroom of 29 students with a great teacher who is barely getting by with minimal support. The administration seem burnt out and there isn't the amazing electrical charge that we had so hoped for within this school. We are already weighing our options for next year and looking at the neighboring school district. The test scores dropped this year which also plays a role in rethinking our decision.
Submitted by parent on October 28, 2013

Been at the school for four years now and hands down the best in Oak Park, the faculty and parents make the school a great experience most importantly for my children. I would not even consider other schools in the area. red Oak is by far the best!!
Submitted by parent on October 01, 2013

We returned to Red Oak after three years out of state and found things to be VERY different, unfortunately not in a good way. Class sizes are 25-34, jammed in tiny classrooms, with all the added stress and reduced one on one contact with their teachers. yet the district is still accepting out of district applicants in spite of the crowded conditions. The music program is no more, unless you count the well-meaning/pleasant but rather inept aide pushing a 'music cart' from room to room. The school's parent association is asking for more and more money -- several hundred a year per child -- plus a lengthy list of school supplies. Teachers are trying their best, but you can already see the exhausted frustration on their faces and we're only a month into the school year. This school has a very poor, disengaged administrator who doesn't seem to care to even want to be there. Sad decline, and not all due to the devastating budget cuts. As returning parents, we're already considering our private- and home-school options. Sad.
Submitted by parent on August 21, 2013

I'd have to agree with the person who posted the teachers in the lower grades are nurturing while the teachers in the upper grade are overly controlling. The Responsibility Statements have to go! These do nothing to foster an innate sense of responsibility and only stress the good students out. There are also a couple of upper grade teachers that obviously have lost their love for teaching years ago and really need to go. Heads up about the "Room Parents." I've never seen such a cliquish group of parents in all my life. They will not let you "in" and you will not have a say unless you are part of their exclusive club. It's too bad, because other than that there are so many wonderful, hardworking teachers and the above factors exponentially detract from that. Sadly, administration is seemingly unable to deal with any of it.
Submitted by parent on July 29, 2013

I wanted to write this review in response to the review below. This is a public school, why would something like rock climbing be included in the curriculum! The school offers after school enrichment, where kids can play sports, make ceramics, act and dance. There is art during the school day. They do have science and technology classes. There are academic contests: spelling bee, geography bee and the math & science olympiad (to name a few). There is an after school drama program. There are two performances a year! They do have special education (if it states your child needs special education in their IEP they will receive it, its the LAW). They do have pull out programs for students that are struggling. The learning center helps children with language arts. My daughter went through this program in 1st grade and now reads two grade levels above her current one! The reviewer sounds like they are more interested in extra curricular activities than a quality education. Red Oak provides a quality public school education. They do have "fun" things too. I cannot speak highly enough about this school!