Beach Elementary School

1710 North Humboldt Street

School District

Portland 1j
Grade

PK, K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:16
Type

public

School Map for Portland School District 1j

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 September 01, 2024

We have two kids at Beach and have had wonderful teachers along the way. We are in the dual language program and have seen incredible progress with our kids. They have lots of support for helping kids with their reading skills beyond just their teachers. There are tons of involved parents that truly care about the community.
Submitted by parent on July 22, 2024

Our experience at this school was absolutely awful. We tried so hard to let our son stay because he had made friends. However, there was just too much bad outweighing the good in the end. It started with how they conveniently lost my son's IEP and supposedly had no clue he was special needs. Then getting a beginning of the year new student IEP meeting was an experience in itself and by the time we finally got one, no one showed but the general Ed teacher. We didn't think it was going to be too big of a deal, they have a large school and things happen. However, our son rarely saw his speech therapist when he was supposed to and his general ed teacher loved to ignore his IEP and get upset with him and us about it constantly. I can't count the number of times she actually got in my face upset about his talking device he uses (he's autistic and was 6 at the time so it's a new thing). Then one day we started noticing our son frequently coming home with new marks and bruises on his face and other areas. He told us the same kid was kicking and hitting him on accident every day on the playground....autistic kids do not always understand intent. When brought up to the teachers, we were called liars. The last straw was the secretary violating the IDEAS act. Our son goes to the same speech therapy and occupational therapy every week at the same time, we get no choice in whether or not it's outside of school due to so many other kids needing the service as well, we take what we can get. We get lucky to get the exact same time and week and we got it as close to end of school as possible. I show up one day to get him for speech and she tells me I needed to be more responsible about my sons appts and not pulling him from school and how I make her job harder and was snapping at me about coming early for him for his talker and things. I reminded her I'm there early every week for those things as I was right then and reminded them all that he is to have his talker on him AT ALL TIMES according to his IEP anyways. She told me he should be getting in trouble for missing the end of school so often for therapy appts (IDEA act anyone) and I then learned he had been getting missed marks for end of day classes for his therapy appts! They are excused appts for an IEP special needs child that had been excused well in advance. It was hard to ever get ahold of the principal there so when a teacher said she'd have her call I said it wouldn't change my mind and never took my son back.
Submitted by parent on March 14, 2024

I have multiple kids at Beach and have been a parent there for six years. I am grateful every day that my kids go here. They love their school and I believe that’s due to incredible staff and an overall great school community. A new principal started last year who is an excellent leader and clear communicator. My kids have loved every teacher they have had and have had an excellent academic as well as social experience.
Submitted by other on January 27, 2024

Class sizes are way too big! Recess is not adequately supervised and this is mainly where bullying happens. Teachers are hardworking but have too much on their plates.
Submitted by parent on December 20, 2021

It’s hard to rate this school, because the teachers/staff are amazing but they are not set up to succeed. We had classes with up to 35 kids. There are so many children either really behind academically or behaviorally, that other kids are often set aside to self-learn. Our son was painfully bored and, other than seeing his friends, hated going to school. His test scores stagnated. We had one incident with the principal and she handled things poorly.. we were told from friends that they had similar experiences. We moved in 2020 specifically to give our son a better education. This school needs funding, full staffing, and strong leader.
Submitted by parent on June 27, 2020

A place where every student is challenged and supported to achieve ambitious goals.
Submitted by parent on June 01, 2020

Overall.. this school is not doing enough to help families from low-income backgrounds or to help children with learning differences thrive. We experienced apathy, instead of empathy. Little talk, and even less action. They claim to be doing work in regards to equity, and yet children remain unsupported.. with their individual needs getting overlooked. My children were happy to learn Spanish and we greatly appreciate the diversity that we've experienced at Beach.. These things are so important to us. And yet, we will be moving on from Beach this year, so that my children can have their social, emotional, and educational needs better met in a more balanced environment with school staff who actually understand neurodiversity and intersectionality just a little more.
Submitted by parent on February 12, 2020

Beach is our neighborhood school and we love the experience of walking to school together in the morning with all the other families and feeling like we are supporting and deepening our engagement in our Overlook community. We feel very lucky to live in such a great neighborhood with our own K-5 DLI school. Our son is in the DLI program and our daughter will join in the fall. Our son has struggled with attention and sensory based behavioral issues and we have found the staff and administration to be proactive and supportive as we have had to work through a number of challenges. I feel like they are on his team and they care for his success as much as we do. It feels great to drop him off at a school every day that I believe is trying their best to do the right thing for the kids in their care. I highly recommend sending your kid to Beach and getting involved in the community, helping to make it stronger for all the kids. Beach is a great neighborhood resource and we should all do what we can to support its success.
Submitted by parent on February 12, 2020

We have moved on to Ockley Green but can't say enough about how great our experience was. We watched the school change over the years and many teachers or staff who weren't pulling their weight moved on thanks to strong leadership. There was a fair amount of admin turnover which can be chaotic at times, but many of the great teachers and staff who work directly with the kids stayed constant and our kids had will always remember this school as a special place.
Submitted by parent on February 11, 2020

Beach is our neighborhood school and we have one child in the DLI Spanish program and another entering this Fall. After a rocky start to kindergarten due to a number of factors we quickly became well acquainted with the school's leadership and support staff as we tried to support our oldest child's adjustment to the structure of the public school environment. Since then we have consistently found them to go above and beyond in caring for and helping students with a wide variety of needs succeed. We had been told by many people before starting Beach that it's the people who make a school great and I can 100% verify that the teachers and staff at Beach are exceptionally caring, attentive and intelligent, ESPECIALLY in light of the constant resource shortages they must be facing. Being a part of Beach helps us feel more connected to our neighborhood and neighbors and being able to take advantage of the fantastic immersion program feels like a luxury in public school. If you are trying to decide between sending your child to beach vs a private or charter (which we most certainly did) please consider this a strong endorsement to support this wonderful neighborhood school by joining the community there.
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2020

We have had a very impressive experience over the course of 4 years. The admin could improve and be more present and engaging. The school could definitely use more support but the community is strong and committed. Families that attend are proud and open and interested in forging bonds with one another and building communities. We love our neighborhood school!
Submitted by parent on October 27, 2018

My daughter has been involved with the Spanish emersion program and has flourished. She's had wonderful teachers from all over the world and been brought to understand different cultures. Her 1st-3rd grade teachers have provided fantastic stricture to her daily routine. Her kinder teacher was very warm and nurturing to the class. We are so lucky to have had our daughter come to this school. We wouldn't change that for a second.
Submitted by teacher on January 23, 2018

As a substitute teacher I would question this school's low rating. I have been in many schools in the district and this is my preferred school in this area of town. From my perspective the students seem more disciplined than at Sabin and Irvington. Leadership stays on top of problems. My perception is that the students in Immersion class at grade 3 and up are more focused than the other classes I have worked with at this school.
Submitted by other on June 27, 2016

There are many student safety issues for students that are not being addressed by the administration. Children are bullied and harassed and there is no system to stop it.
Submitted by parent on April 16, 2016

This school has some of the best teachers who really care about their students and work so hard to prepare them for life. The school has an amazing, free afterschool program and the the vice principal is really good at relating with the kids and parents. New principal seems good too, though I haven't had as much experience with her. This school will be a K-5 starting in the fall of 2016 and in my opinion, it is a school on the rise. My kids will be going to middle school next year but we appreciated our time at Beach. It's not perfect, but it's the type of school that if your family takes education seriously your child will do well, because the teachers will meet you more than half way.
Submitted by other on July 04, 2014

I would not put this at the top of the list for good schools My daughter is constantly getting exposure to swear words fights in the hallways and she has been bullied several times but The teachers are good they care about the kids and they are concerned about the environment the principal of 2013-14 was not encouraging not concerned about the environment she doesn't let the kids have a creative outlet They didn't even have a music class a choir or a band or drama if there was a list of ten good schools I'd put beach on a completely different list (poor schools).
Submitted by parent on September 27, 2013

My daughter is in kindergarten and I like the fact the the staffs are very nice with positive attitude. I don't like the fact that during my meeting with my daughters teacher she mention that the water at this school is dirty and prefer my daughter bring her own water bottle. Which is understandable but if there is something wrong with the water the should try to get that fix. (I think) so here is the other thing that is such a disturbance to me, I don't understand why daughter has to walk herself to class because where my daughters class is located its not gated or Secured. The are ppl out in the field walking and playing with their dog. I just think that if its school open hours no one should be there other than staff and students. And I understand my daughter is not in the Spanish immersion class but why do the non Spanish immersion kindergarten have to walk themselves to class and the Spanish immersion kindergarten students wait in the cafeteria until their teacher arrive to walk together as a group to their class room. I don't understand why the non Spanish immersion teachers do that as well. I'm a mother that looks looking out for her daughters safety.
Submitted by parent on May 21, 2013

I just would like to say that our relationship with Beach School has been a bitter sweet one. I am glad that next year 12/13 will be my son's last year at this school beacuse he will be in 9th grade. Mr. Breuckman had to have been the best principal for this school. I really miss having him around. He was in tuned with the school, staff, parents and most important the students. Not every child is made for the immersion program at this school and it seems that Rebecca Torres is pushing that this school to become completely bilingual. She is going away with teachers & teacher assistants that have been at Beach school for 15 plus years. My child as well as many others have grown with many of these assistants and they have proved theirselves to be an important part of the Beach community. Many beneficial programs are being canceled for absolutely no reason at all. The Suzuki program was canceled per Rebecca Torres- The parents were very unhappy with this desicion. The PTA has raised $9,000 dolalrs and Beach has purchased computers for the students and the computers are locked in the VP office, For what?? What good are the computers going to be if there not accessible to the kids?
Submitted by parent on May 09, 2011

My son has been in this school since Kindergarten and has done wonderfully. The staff is great and the programs are wonderful. Wish they had more after school programs, larger library and more playground equipment but it is still a great school. I highly recommend this school for all students grades pre-K to 8th.
Submitted by parent on April 19, 2011

My son started this school as a kindergartener. This was one of the top schools to choose from in this area, but I now realize it is very poor in comparison to schools right across the river in Vancouver, or especially Camas. My son is gifted and my husband and I assumed this school, with all its ratings would be great. Unfortunately, this is not the case. With a very low soceoeconomic status, frusterated and underfunded teachers and a rough population of students, this school would be great if your child has grown up very street smart, but my son is constantly bullied and the teachers or staff has yet to resolve these issues. My son has gone from loving his day care learning program for years to "hating" school and struggling emotionally. We are transfering to the Vancouver or Camas areas as soon as possible so my son can be in a school that has funding, multiple language and arts opportunities, reimbursed teachers along with an educated student population. I am not impressed, as we had researched and had high expectations for this learning environment. Regretfully, Dr. Mom