St Columba Catholic School

7800 Livingston Road

Oxon Hill, MD 20745

22 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK, K-8
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on May 05, 2021

St. Columba Catholic School is a wonderful, family-focused school. Our daughter will be entering her fourth year this upcoming Fall. We are very pleased with the quality of education, the concern and care from the faculty and staff, and the great sense of community with the other families. This is a great school for working parents, offering before care (starting before 7 am) and after care (ending at 6 pm). The School features a good variety of after-school activities including band and soccer. We signed-up for the karate lessons last year. The School features 10 grades, starting with Pre-K and graduating eighth graders. If you live or work within 10 miles of the school, it is worth your while to visit and see for yourself. St. Columba School consistently delivers an established and trusted private school education providing the complete academic experience from a convenient location to your work and home at an affordable price. Children from all faiths are welcomed!
Submitted by other on May 04, 2021

The school has proven its ability to operate effectively either in-person or virtually while supporting the academic needs of students in a caring and supporting environment. The teachers and the school administration listen to concerns and act on issues as quickly as they are able. Since many of the teachers have been at the school for many years or have sent their children to the school, they have a good understanding of how to relate to parent concerns. The current principal, an alumna of the school, encourages the use of technology and the sharing of news about the school community on social media.
Submitted by parent on July 01, 2019

Wonderful experience, my children love the school and have been there for the last 4 years. Parent volunteers are short in supply but the ones who step up are great. We have had 2 Golden Apple teachers in the last 2 years, which says a lot about the faculty and the quality of teaching they provide to the students.
Submitted by parent on April 17, 2019

Pre- K class has too many children and the teacher cannot handle that number of children who with their first experience in a school environment was not a great one at all. School got greedy with looking at the tuition and not at giving the children the attention they need.
Submitted by parent on September 25, 2018

Our children loves this school! The teachers are warm and kind and their friends/classmates shares the same Christian values that are being instilled by the school. Their after school programs are diverse and fun. The teacher and student ratio is just right. They have hired new teachers that helped improve its academic. We are very happy with St. Columba school!
Submitted by parent on February 25, 2017

The reason i choose to pay for education is to ensure my child gets the best of everything we can afford him. I find the school to be years behind others in technology and math department. I may decide to private tutor as I dont want my money wasted nor my child's time wasted. He can learn quicker and more efficiently at another facility.
Submitted by other on August 31, 2016

First of all, all schools have their own flaws. Being an active parent of this school, I would like to believe that it takes active and supportive parents as well to make a school good, if not great. Yes, we do pay $$ for a good education for our children. But as parents, we have the responsibility to not only help our own children, but support the place where our children learn new things each day. We cannot leave it all up to the teachers and staff. With this said, my two children love St. Columba since it provides them a safe community with wonderful teachers who care. This year will be a big change because of the new principal, but she is very eager to bring in more technology which I think is a major plus! I have high hopes that I can give St. Columba 5 stars by the end of this year!
Submitted by parent on August 06, 2016

St. Columba School is a great school. They have a caring, dedicated, and nurturing staff and faculty. No they aren't perfect, but they do strive to be the best and do the best for our children. Whats wrong with being old school, it helps make children well round adults. All schools are not a perfect fit for all children, it's the parents job to find the right school , as we all know some people are not that easy to please. Check us out we just might be the right school for you.
Submitted by parent on June 03, 2016

First, there has been a disingenuous effort to flood this thread with glowing comments. Don't believe the hype. Test scores in math are low. Transparency is non-existent. School Leadership is weak and hostile to even the most basic of requests from parents. Multiple parents have left school abruptly mid-school year. Many others are leaving at the end of this school year. My suggestion: keep looking!!!
Submitted by other on May 05, 2016

St. Columba School is at its 54 years! To me this says a lot about a school. It is a tight knit community with parents and teachers working hand in hand in ensuring that the children are given quality education. Students are very respectful and genuinely enjoys being in school. I highly recommend it to anyone!!!
Submitted by parent on May 03, 2016

My children love St. Columba. The teachers are very caring and nurturing. The environment is very small community. Everyone (parents and teachers) are eager to help each other. It truly is the "it takes a village" mentality.
Submitted by other on May 02, 2016

I could not be more pleased with the education that my daughter has and is receiving from St. Columba. My husband is an alumni, my mother-in-law has been a parishioner and choir member for over 28 years. Every year the school meets and works harder to achieve even higher standards for the kids.
Submitted by parent on July 27, 2015

Would not advise it to anyone. In my honest opinion this is a poor school. Save your money.
Submitted by other on June 13, 2014

Love the school! There is a reason why STC has been pumping out GREAT MINDS for over 50 years -- DEDICATED Teachers!!
Submitted by parent on June 13, 2014

GREAT school with qualified, caring, and nurturing teachers!! As a St. Columba (Oxon Hill, MD) parent I was quite pleased with the quality and level of education my child received. She started in Kindergarten, graduated with honors, accepted to ALL of the high schools she applied to, and received scholarships! [I have another one at the school now!] The teachers at STC CARE about their students, are DEDICATED to the students and the profession, WORK HARD to ensure the kids are prepared for high school, and make themselves AVAILABLE to parents when issues arise. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND St. Columba.
Submitted by other on June 11, 2014

The way the teachers teach is horrible! It is so old school and the kids are behind compared to other schools. There is no air so the kids suffer when it's hot. And the kids are out of control!!!!!!
Submitted by parent on December 31, 2013

Despite other ratings regarding technology, i feel that i get emails from the school at least 3 times a week, once from the principal, and at least twice from the teacher. As for other tech savvy tools, i would rather the children learn how to do things manually through verbal interaction. In this day and age, technology changes so fast, the operating system or the "next big thing" will be obsolete by the time they need it in the "real world". Other luxuries such as air conditioning...I have never experienced in school air conditioning except for one or two classes, if i was lucky, so i dont get what the big deal is. They have provisions in place for extreme heat and that's what matters. Teachers are very involved and even when its a small behavioral issue, i've been contacted before it turns in to a bigger issue. They expect parent involvement and reward it. If you dont attend HSA meetings or are not involved, you'll find yourself behind. I hear stories of low attendance during HSA meetings. St Columba has one every month and I've never seen less than 100 people at any given meeting. You get out what you put in. I am extremely happy with St Columba.
Submitted by parent on November 08, 2013

This school may not have all the fundings for the high tech programs (since when was FB membership and email use a measure of a good school), but I was looking for a school that delivered excellent academics and a close knit caring family atmosphere. I got it at St. Columba bar none. It takes a while to get used to all the procedures and rules/regulations, but the staff and faculty all love the children and think of their best interest in all situations (despite their limited budget). It promotes high acadamics, discipline, and structure. Don't expect to just drop off your kid and let the school do the rest. They expect parents to be very active. Expect to be very active on a daily basis (esp. homework). My child loves it here and has threatened to never talk to me again if I ever think about switching her so I'm hoping we don't have to relocate. To address the A/C situation, they are fundraising like crazy for this. It's an expensive venture. And regarding the technology, call me old fashioned, but I can provide all that at home. My child is advanced in all areas and happily goes to school everyday. Consider St. Columba and decide for yourself.
Submitted by parent on July 08, 2013

A school that has no programs for kids who are falling behind in reading, No programs for kids who are advanced either. You get the same generic education no matter what, but wait they have a resource teacher who does what ??? No one knows or knows who she is. This school took 50 years to get on facebook, 49 years to get a web page that works, 49 years to start using email. The principal said in the home and school meeting about the email "baby steps". It is not that difficult send an email. Not the school for me anymore. I suggest you do your own research and find out the truth.
Submitted by parent on April 29, 2013

There are a lot of things going wrong with this school, no air conditioning, no control in the classrooms, Principal who is afraid of technology and teachers who are not certified. If you send a teacher a email, they respond by writing in the planner because they are so far back technology wise. The parents fight against the school to try and make it better, but it is excuse after excuse and no way forward.