Hillcrest Elementary School

1010 East Concord Street

School District

Orange County Public Schools
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:13
Type

public

School Map for Orange County Public Schools

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 other on November 09, 2023

Every time a student had an issue and the principal was made aware she would just say to the student you are ok. Send them vack to class. Very negative environment. Front clerk was rude and wouldnt be bothered to answer any questions.
Submitted by parent on November 08, 2022

I had two children who came in to the french side of this charter school. Overall the new facility was great, the teachers are competent and engaging, and the language arts added an edge to my children's education.The reason I scored safety and family engagement low: GUNS! Let me say it again GUNS! Not real guns but role play and an incident that involved two children bringing items that looked and reloaded like real guns to school. This was 2021 school year in a 4th grade class. The parents were never notified by the principle that there had been an incident. The principle trivialized the situation by telling parents (that found out through their child) anything could be a weapon. Ok, yes, but "anything" isn't designed with the primary intention of being a weapon; designed to look like a weapon or helping you learn how to wield a real version of itself. These kids were literally sending other children in their class videos of themselves loading the mag, racking the slide and pointing the barrel at the camera before they ever brought the fake weapons in to school.The children involved in bringing these guns to school, one of which was a teachers child, were partitioned off and watched by an adult till the end of the school year (only weeks away). I once read about a kid who was suspended for shaping his pop tart into a gun by eating parts of it and than pointing it at students... These kids had a slap on the wrist. No suspension, and nothing on their record that indicates this may be the start of a bigger issue. Yes, Hillcrest has an officer on duty, yes, the officer was aware of the situation and should have made a report on it. I'm hoping he did his due diligence. The principle however didn'tThe reason I scored special education low: One of my children has special education needs and the school leadership was unwilling to acknowledge that testing was needed until the following school year. Once tested they were accommodating, but there was/is a rooted need for this school to remain a top rated institution in the area, which in my opinion only pits the motives of the school against children who can't bring in the exceptional test scores required to keep it's status.We yanked our kids from this school and put them in private school. 3 stars is average, roughly translating to a C, it's essentially the level of education you're going to get from any of the public schools in the Orlando area.
Submitted by parent on July 15, 2022

Mi hijo estudia desde kinder y ya está en tercero y ama su escuela. Las instalaciones son modernas y hacen mucho uso de la tecnología el nivel académico es alto y son bien exigentes en cuanto a los test .. si buscas un elementary público excelente pues este es el correcto
Submitted by parent on April 06, 2022

Hi, my daughter has started in French Academy of Kindergarten this year and she loved the school and teachers. The international mindset and spirit of the school prepares children to work in an international environment.
Submitted by parent on December 21, 2021

The fact that the administration and Principal Ortega focused on safety during a pandemic demonstrated that they care about our children and community. As a parent of two children whom attend, I can attest that we are extremely thankful and grateful for the entire faculties dedication to our children's safety, prestige education (Ranked 3rd in Orange Country) and focus on excelling. Hillcrest Elementary is not only a fabulous foreign language academy but also an overall wonderful school. My kids are proud to be part of the Hero family.
Submitted by parent on April 16, 2020

My child attended this school for the 2018-2019 school year for 1st grade. The school culture was so bad we chose to withdraw and return to our zoned school for the following year. The bureaucracy and obsession with safety was over the top. The foreign language education was great and it was the reason we applied but the administration was not warm, friendly or welcoming. My child started the year liking school and finished the year with an inordinate amount of headaches and general malaise and tried to avoid going to school. After experiencing an almost complete year at our local zoned school the difference is night and day. I would rate our local school at 5 stars and Hillcrest at 2.5 stars (the foreign language program is 5 stars but the administration is 1 star)
Submitted by parent on December 02, 2019

It is an A experience for sure. I do wish we could volunteer in our children's classrooms. In some of the schools close by, the parents can. I also wish the website was more up to date. The office staff is not a very positive experience, but nothing is perfect. We feel super lucky to be at a school where our child is thriving and loves to learn!
Submitted by other on May 16, 2017

Fantastic neighborhood and teachers and the school is very professional...
Submitted by other on September 02, 2016

Once again Hillcrest Elementary school was awarded with the prestigious designation of National School of Excellence. The teachers and staff are exceptional. Very strong PTA and parental involvement. We are so blessed to have our child attending Hillcrest.
Submitted by parent on May 02, 2016

My daughter transferred to Hillcrest mid-year of her Kindergarten year. She has thrived here; due in large part to the OUTSTANDING teachers and principal. They truly care about the children they are watching over and educating, and they show their love and care for the children each as INDIVIDUALS. This is an outstanding school that is a blessing to the students here.
Submitted by parent on August 20, 2013

We are new to the school, but so far I've been impressed with the teachers, office staff, and classrooms. My daughter is happy and I am thrilled. Parent involvement seems higher than in other schools my kids have attended.
Submitted by parent on August 05, 2013

Great school. Love the language classes. New uniforms coming - hurray! Cafeteria could improve. Web site could be more updated. More green space is needed for children to have recess or outdoor lunch with parents. But otherwise awesome school, great parent involvement, and excellent teachers and principal.
Submitted by teacher on July 21, 2013

There was a change in administration beginning the 2012-2013 school year and foreign language curriculum was adopted for the Spanish and French academies. The principal is professional, accessible and passionate about student success and parent input and involvement and has raised the standard for both faculty and staff and the foreign language magnet program. There is a high expectation for Common Core standards to be taught with rigor but a dire need for upgraded technology in the school to prepare for OCPS and state target of full digital curriculum by 2016. A proactive PTA and SAC works cooperatively with administration and the future is bright for Hillcrest.
Submitted by parent on April 14, 2013

In my opinion, much inproved with the new principal. With multiple children, we've been here long enough to experience 3 principals and see a large difference. Regretably, many good teachers have left, but many good remain and have had a positive influence on our children. Hopefully, positive changes continue and the school can return to previous academic levels for our remaining years. New parents get involved to positively influence the academic experience for your childen.
Submitted by parent on November 07, 2012

Hillcrest is a wonderful school. This year we have a new Principal who is amazing! She is doing an outstanding job. Her number one priority is the safety of our children and she has implemented some excellent changes. She has created a wonderful nurturing environment for our Teachers and children and we are extremely fortunate to have her here. She is indeed a breath of fresh air!
Submitted by parent on October 30, 2012

We are just a few months into the year with the new Principal. The former principal was OUTSTANDING. This new one makes robo-calls to the parents every weekend. She instantly changed procedures that were working just fine. She cites "safety" for every change she makes - although safety is clearly not an issue. She comes from a school that was quite unlike Hillcrest, and she didn't take the time to learn about Hillcrest's atmosphere before implementing changes that are probably necessary at schools with little parental involvement and that have behavioral issues. Hillcrest is a small school with strong community and parental involvement. It is an exceptional place for a child to go to school with caring teachers. This new principal needs to realize that and stop running it like the institutions she's used to and return to the comfortable and fun learning environment that Hillcrest teachers, parents, students and the former principal worked so hard to achieve. I've heard many complaints about this new principal. She needs to wake up or move on.
Submitted by other on August 16, 2011

I think Hillcrest is a Wonderful school. I just graduated from 5th grade. I was in Ms. Brewer's class she is the best 5th grade teacher. I was a Saftey Patrol and I saw everyone in the morning. Every is well-behaved and all the teachers are great. You can ask any teacher for help. It is a wonderful school and i would recommend it to anyone i knew! A one word rating would be: Awesome!!!!!!!
Submitted by parent on December 23, 2010

The school seems to accomadate the younger children such as preK thru 1 or 2 grade. The 3rd, 4th and 5th grade classes are not so good anymore. The fifth grade has only one class, meaning the 4th grade students in the neighborhood did not return because of ongoing administrative issues. Meaning the Principal is not doing her job, and she does not have a good reputation with the parents. She is known to be very rude and arrogant and does not seem to care about the kids at all. What a shame for such a fabulous school in the past, before current Principal. The school recently put in a portable building for the Vietnamese children, when the main building has empty upstairs classrooms. The school wastes money on crazy things like a unfinished garden, that has been underconstruction for about 3 years and the children have never gotten to use it. The area could have been used for PE or the money for a music program. But instead they have an unused garden area. And a past school PTA president raised money for a greenhouse and it was never built. (where did that $ go?).
Submitted by parent on May 17, 2010

My daughter started KG this year at Hillcrest and I have fallen in love with this school. I am very pleased when my child comes home and has so much to tell me about what she has learned everyday. The principal has done an excellent job to the best of her capacity and cares about the school. The teachers are dedicated and there is tremendous parent involvement. As such, these are the qualities that make up an exceptional learning environment for children to learn. I look forward to the expansion of this wonderful school.