St. Marys School

323 Vermont Avenue

Oak Ridge, TN 37830

27 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-8
Type

private

Find Homes for Sale in this School Zone

Reviews

Submitted by parent on January 22, 2018

St. Mary's school does have excellent teachers. However, the leadership at the school threatens any teachers that want to help truly help students. They instruct faculty and staff to cover up and hide problems at school rather than being open and honest and addressing problems. I didn't believe this until it happened to my own child.
Submitted by parent on August 25, 2016

If you are considering sending your child to St. Mary's School, then you are obviously a parent who wishes to find a school that not only educates your child in academic subjects, but also teaches them to become a Christian young man or woman in every sense of the word. Teaching a child to read and write is offered at every school, but what makes St. Mary's special isn't. The principal of the school is a position always held by a Dominican Sister, who has dedicated her life to serving others. The principal is concerned about each child individually. It's their calling to teach our children to live their lives in a way that is pleasing to God. If you keep this in mind, you must understand that unlike a lay principal, they do not care if you are rich, poor, highly intelligent or struggle to learn; they, like Jesus care about each and every child. This is evident in all the Sisters that teach in the school and is a contagious emotion that spreads to all the lay teachers and parents who volunteer regularly in the school. I have no doubt that making the monetary sacrifices to send my children to St. Mary's School has been the best decision I have ever made as a parent. All of my high school children have been extremely prepared for the academic challenges in high school by testing out of Spanish 1 and placing into all the honors class curriculum. However, more importantly they have arrived at this socially challenging point in their lives with a concrete foundation of Christian values that I pray will guide them for the rest of their lives.
Submitted by parent on August 21, 2016

St Mary's is a beautiful school with a dedicated staff. The small environment ensures that my child's instruction is tailored to her individual needs. I love that the entire staff takes a vested interest in my child's learning. The Dominican sisters bring in the added value of faith and community to the classroom. While the level of homework can be intense, all of the teachers are amazingly communicative and flexible. The rigor is intense, but the teachers always go above and beyond to ensure that my child is making gains. They are truly interested in the success of each student and understand the value of family. St Mary's makes my family feel so incredibly welcome and that my child is more than just a number.
Submitted by parent on July 14, 2016

St. Mary's was the best decision that my husband and I made. The small school environment and close relationship between teachers and students made our kids' education seem very personal, like they really knew our kids. The presence of the Dominican Sisters guaranteed that the traditional values that are reinforced at the school really carried them into high school. The educational skills they gained prepared them well as they moved on.
Submitted by parent on April 13, 2016

Great school for girls...until middle school. Boys and those with special learning needs should go elsewhere. Very much old school, lacked respect for technology. Had substandard fine arts and instrumental music offerings. (My kids had to learn to read music through private lessons.) Staff refused to use email to communicate with families, a standard practice in all other schools. Parents with children with attention challenges are told to medicate them and if problems continue they are asked to leave. Children who have excellent academic skills are treated favorably and those with average skills are treated as second and third class. Pidgeonholing kids when they are 8 to 12 years old is absolutely ridiculous. The Catholic Sisters, while dedicated, are out of touch with the challenges of 21st century families. They understand little about supporting special and diverse learning needs of kids. Staff prefer teaching the 'easy kids' and treat the challenging kids differently. This is hardly what one would expect from a ministry of the Church. Hopefully, this will change under Pope Francis's direction. If we knew what we know now, we would have chosen the public school for middle school, maybe sooner. Admittedly, we drank the Kool-Aid and were blind to our options. If there are any doubts about these comments, ask the school about their enrollment history over the past 10 years, and results from parent surveys and student exit interviews. Also ask to see SACS accreditation recommendations. Do your due diligence.
Submitted by parent on June 11, 2015

I love St. Mary's! The students are happy and have a great rapport with the faculty and staff. The newspapers speak to their academic successes: 16 of the 18 school Science Fair winners won awards at the Southern Appalachian Science and Engineering Fair, a 5th grader was the Grand Champion in the Da Vinci Science Fair as well as taking 1st place in Earth Science. 8th graders test into Spanish II and some into Spanish III. My daughter took Algebra II and Geometry her freshman year in high school and did great. I have found the school very responsive to concerns addressed over the years. Bullying happens everywhere, but at St. Mary's it is addressed. I have found student safety to be a top priority at the school. Go and visit the school. It is a caring and nurturing environment!
Submitted by parent on May 03, 2015

St. Mary's is wonderful! The administration, teachers, and staff are dedicated to providing an atmosphere in which children are able to thrive academically, practice their faith, perform service projects, and enjoy a number of extra-curricular activities. Some of our school's highlights are: *We have a primary grades science lab as well as a science lab for the big kids. * Pre-K and kindergarten teachers use small group, hands-on methods. * All students (Pre-K through 8th) have classes in religion, Spanish, language arts, math, social studies, science, phys. ed., computer, music, library, and art. * Many of our graduates qualify for AP classes in high school. * Students attend All-School Mass every Friday. Grades 1 through 8 attend Mass twice a week. * Our "Big Buddy/Little Buddy" program, pairing the Pre-K, kindergarten, and 1st grade children with grades 6, 7, and 8, benefits the older students as much as it does the little ones. * Extended child care is available both before and after school. * There are a number of after school activities offered, such as sports, clay club, and gardening club, just to name a few. * Bullying is not tolerated!
Submitted by parent on April 28, 2015

Spent 3 years at St Mary's. Huge disappointment. My children are on the spectrum. My eldest needs no accommodation but also gained no confidence at this school. The kids had to eat lunch before they could get up from table, not helpful when child has food therapy & problems eating. He often went hungry. My other child was told he was a 'bad boy' because he had trouble settling into the preK schedule. Special Ed teacher didn't know her job and waited 3 weeks into school to even start helping. A child got injured at the festival because a volunteer parent was 'goofing off'. Nothing was done because his contributions to the school were more important to the principle, vice principle & superintendent than the child's safety. The staff and board members are more important than the children. Board meetings are closed with no transparency. The curriculum is below the standards of Oak Ridge public schools, especially in math. Bullying is allowed and both the bully and victim are blamed equally for any fighting. I have seen bullying in 3 separate sets of children. Parents also contributed to the bullying in one instance. I would recommend finding another Catholic school.
Submitted by parent on March 13, 2015

My child attended this school for 5 years, had mandatory Spanish class every year and still can't form the first sentence, nor can any of his peers. No advanced level classes for students who excel in math or reading...everyone stuck in one group and held back by academically struggling kids. Not especially well behaved kids with no one issuing consequences. Catholic school in name only; just a bunch of wannabes paying too much money so they can say they send their kids to private school. Little more. Sensible people, please save your money!
Submitted by parent on February 15, 2015

Funny to read several reviews, all posted on the same day. Someone is stuffing the proverbial ballot box! Smells like desperation. This school is only good compared to area public. It is a shadow of its former self. Blue Ribbon was 2010, under different principal and staff. New principal/vp/board are inept group-thinkers and will accept anyone's money without improving programs. Most of the great teachers have retired. Some grades have 25 in a single classroom. Children's safety and injuries are often swept under the rug. No grievance procedure in place, just dismissive attitudes. Diocese needs to make sweeping changes to save SMS in the long term. Please restore the heart of Oak Ridge to its rightful place.
Submitted by teacher on May 02, 2014

St. Mary's School provides an academically challenging and nurturing environment. The faculty and staff genuinely care about the well-being and development of all our students and our fellow colleagues. I have been so blessed with my experience as a teacher, that without reservation I knew it was the place to enroll my child for his education. As a parent and teacher, I could not be more pleased.
Submitted by parent on April 30, 2014

My school is the best, faith and family oriented education my children can receive. The academics are second to none and they are steadily building to improve athletics. I look forward to many more years of being a St Mary's parent.
Submitted by parent on April 29, 2014

When we moved to the area several years ago, we visited three private schools . Upon visiting St. Mary's School, we knew this was the school we wanted to be a part of. There was an instant feeling of a warm, caring, and nurturing environment. The low student to teacher ratio provides a learning environment that allows teachers the ability to adapt to the child's needs. We especially feel blessed to have the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia presence in the school, offering a faith based education. We appreciate the daily blessings St. Mary's School provides in our child's education!
Submitted by other on April 29, 2014

I love my school. We have a science lab where you can do all sorts of fun things such as building catapults, birdwatching, and dissecting animals. There are many cool after school programs like clay club, volleyball, basketball, and garden club. You should definitely consider going to this school! (Written by a student in grade 4)
Submitted by parent on April 24, 2014

Before St Marys, my child scored satisfactory or below on most tests. Immediately gained an enthusiastic attitude about school and became more content. Seldom brings home less than 100 on tests. Enjoys reading now without note. All due to the blessing of St Marys. I especially appreciate my child learning Spanish, now instead of later. St Marys genuninely cares for the intellect, the heart and the soul of all these kids. I wish every child could enjoy an educational environment that is loving and respectful to students. When college comes, we will be academically preparred as well as already having years of appropriate behavior, thoughtful decision making, the discipline of self-control and confidence that has already made a positive impressionable difference. St Marys has made a difference!
Submitted by parent on April 23, 2014

St Mary's Oak Ridge is a warm and welcoming place, that is well situated for the highest level of education. The classes are small enough to allow for much one on one interaction between the children and the teachers. Yet the entire school interacts like a large family. The schools approach to education goes well beyond the standard and enables all levels of learning to be incorporated in the classes. The interaction between our school and the public school system to facilitate their resources to benefit the education of our children is outstanding.
Submitted by parent on April 23, 2014

Many schools have high academic standards and excellent track records of test scores. St Mary's has that and much more. St Mary's is a complete package with high standards for all teachers, staff, and students. This results in superior role models of Catholic Christian attitudes of caring, compassion, helpfulness to each other, involvement at all levels, willingness to serve, and deportment for all who make up the St Mary's school community. The students see this every day and cannot help but strive to emulate their professional and peer models. The role of the Sisters of St Cecilia is paramount in setting the standard in all respects. The faith-based learning at St Mary's prepares even the youngest for excellence in life and in academics. As a parent who has observed many public, private and parochial school environments and student bodies over many years, I can truly attest that St Mary's is where I want my student grow and prosper. St Mary's makes a difference each and every day and it shows!
Submitted by parent on April 23, 2014

Our school is excellent because we have small class sizes, lots of individual attention, and excellent teachers. The staff and teachers at St. Mary's are there to for the students and go above and beyond what is expected!! We are very pleased with our school.
Submitted by parent on April 21, 2014

What a precious, wonderful school! They truly are a family. The students are greeted every morning by name as they enter the door! We love the scool's laid back atmosphere with the focus on academic learning and being a Christian family. We have enjoyed our St Marys experience!
Submitted by parent on April 15, 2014

We are so thankful for St. Mary s School. The teachers and staff are caring, compassionate and there for our children. We chose St. Mary s for the outstanding Academics and we received so much more. The School develops the whole person. Our children have gained morals and values that will be with them forever and carry them through the many trials of life. They look forward to school every day and miss school during the holidays. I am very grateful to St. Mary s Church for the gift they have given our family.