Hay Elementary School

201 Garfield Street

School District

Seattle Public Schools
Grade

K-5
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:16
Type

public

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 October 28, 2024

Wonderful school with an amazing community! Teachers and staff are excellent and very caring. They really want to see your kids thrive. The PTA is outstanding! They put on so many fun events (Jaguar Jog, Rock, Paper Scissors tournament, Monster Mash, etc). The SPED is the best and works with your child's individual needs. We really love this school!!
Submitted by parent on January 23, 2024

A wonderful community! Excellent faculty with really long teacher tenure. Amazing playground (2 big play structures, grass, turf, shady trees, mosaic art, view of the Space Needle). Fun school events for the kids and families.
Submitted by parent on October 02, 2019

Our family is extremely happy with the education at John Hay. We have two kids here and have done grades K-2 so far. There are down sides like you'll have at every school, but the good far exceeds it. The teachers are very capable and do an amazing job teaching all their students the myriad of subjects they go through. There's a good amount of focus on STEM and art, which keeps my kids loving the fun side of school. The parents are active and volunteer a lot of time to support staff and tutor students. It's a really strong community.
Submitted by student on December 09, 2016

this school is okay. the teachers like to teach with humor, at least some, and it's a fun way of learning, some other teachers are strict and yell alot. have witnessed some bullying...
Submitted by parent on October 12, 2015

The upheaval with long-time principal and mainstay Kari Hansen leaving has left the community in a bit of a flux. The staff is great but looks to a strong leader, as does the parent population.Like many north end schools heavy demand on fund raising to make up for what the District and State doesn't fund or pay for. Volunteer demands are high but always appreciated. Love the fact that kids have access to Multi-Arts and Technology. Love Festival of the Arts and that the hallways are full of classwork and artwork throughout the year.
Submitted by parent on February 09, 2015

Good school as long as your kid is left-brained. Right-brained kids (which make about 25% of the population) learn differently; for instance they are visual, and phonics don't work well for them. They need to be taught with different methods. John Hay couldn't care less about that segment of the population, so those kids tend to space out, or be disruptive, and the school is content with antagonizing them, and trying to either lead them out of the school, or have them under Ritalin. Realize that the school gets good ratings because of academics. But is that really what you want for your kid? As that age, the most important things to develop are respect, love for others, and self-confidence. Right-brained kids at John Hay will NOT develop self-confidence as they are constantly told they are failing.
Submitted by other on January 13, 2015

This school is overcrowded and I'm disappointed with the education my boys are getting. Hopefully, the alcohol rehab center isn't going to set up shop on school grounds.
Submitted by parent on August 09, 2014

Fantastic education, with active students and parents which helps make for a involved and well funded school. No wonder this school rates a 10 year over year ...
Submitted by other on July 18, 2013

John Hay is an excellent school with superb teachers and staff. I attended Hay for four years and was welcomed in second grade with open arms. Every teacher I had was amazing and pushed every student in the class to try their hardest. With a principal who prevents bullying, makes sure students are safe, and encourages hardwork it's easy to feel like a part of the community within days. This is an outstanding school and I'm glad it was part of my life. I will never forget this school.
Submitted by parent on March 05, 2013

Superb school. When we came to John Hay we were moving from a private school experience which we thought would be very difficult to top - John Hay did it in spades. The teachers are excellent with over half of them holding masters degrees. The front office is second to none - Angie and Wendy know every childs name in that school and are always kind and helpful. Mr. Sturm the gym teacher is the friendliest man around and Ms. Hanson is a strong and fun-loving principal. Teachers work hard to challenge children at all levels and the education my children have received has been excellent. There is an amazing group of parents who are always volunteering and it makes for a wonderful community. You'd be hard pressed to find a better school anywhere.
Submitted by parent on August 09, 2011

We had hoped it was going to be as good as the ratings but we had a very poor experience last year and pulled our son out as a result. We moved over to Seattle mid year and got a third grade teacher for our son that the the teacher who was rigid, outdated, and a very poor communicator. From the first week when my son was trying to transition to a new school he was kept in from recess almost daily. I tried to work with her, explaining he had focus issues and had never been in trouble before she didn't answer emails. The principle was sympathetic but she said she had known the teacher wasn't a good fit but the school was full to the top and there wasn't any where to move him. We felt we had no where to turn or much support. Since we left we have been approached by several parents that she has been a big problem for many years but no action was taken. I would not recommend John Hay.