Desert Oasis Elementary School

17161 West Bajada Road

School District

Nadaburg Unified
Grade

PK, K-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:21
Type

public

School Map for Nadaburg Unified School District

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 February 02, 2024

I feel the school and staff do a good job with involving the community. The students and staff are respectful.
Submitted by parent on May 07, 2019

Worst school my kids have been to
Submitted by parent on May 24, 2018

This school has some great teachers that work closely with their students success. The superintendent will now be the principal at Desert Oasis 2018/2019. He will be working 2 jobs for one pay, that is a true leader. He was principal in Laveen Az with 20+ years of admin experience. He took a pay decrease leaving Laveen to lead this district in the right direction. My children were at a school that had heavy parental involvement that attributed to the schools success. This school has little parental involvement which is worrisome, I hope more families support their local school do help Nadaburg school district be a leader in AZ education.
Submitted by parent on April 30, 2018

Thankful to have been able to move out of this district. Principal favors teachers. Teachers are overall excellent, but the behavior problems of lots of kids made learning very hard for my kids. They did not want to go to school anymore.
Submitted by parent on February 26, 2018

99.9% positive. This is our child's 3rd year at DO and she is progressing at the proper levels.
Submitted by parent on August 12, 2017

Horrible my son was tormented by the teachers and the principal she even went so far as to hold my son from getting on the bus to try and get me to come talk to her about him sleeping in class which I couldn't do at the time as I had no vehicle so I had to find someone to go get my son from the school. I changed him to Connections Academy and they found out with in a month that he was sleeping because he is autistic and dyslexic so he was completely lost he was in D.O. for a year and all he got there was put down.
Submitted by parent on July 19, 2017

My children have gone to school here since Kindergarten. There has been change throughout, but the school is finally reached its highest point. They have little turn over with teachers now. It is very welcoming the minute you walk through the door until you leave. Teachers are at their doors with smiles and greeting each child as they enter. The Principal is always around campus and willing to speak with anyone-very approachable. I couldn't imagine sending my kids anywhere else! Great staff! Great School!
Submitted by parent on May 27, 2017

This is our first year and we are very impressed! This is a great school! I love how the children are greeted with smiles every day! The teachers are amazing! They make sure the students understand what they are being taught. The staff is super friendly and very helpful. They have an awesome coach that loves working with the kids and gives so much of his time to the sports teams. I am so glad we came across this school!
Submitted by other on April 29, 2017

Absolute joke of a school I truly feel like I set my kids backwards sending them there...from the constant revolving door of teachers to a completely useless principal...who cannot seem to follow the dress code that she tries to enforce...and dont think about trying to complain about a teacher because she will not listen at all...she is very condisending and talks down to everyone...your only safe if your in her inner circle...maybe she should focus more on things like my oldest teaching her teachers than what these kids are wearing...it just needs to close its doors...it is definitely not a school
Submitted by parent on March 13, 2017

My daughter has attended Desert Oasis for 3 years, upon completion of her current 5th grade year. During her first 2 years, she thrived. Even making honor roll despite being on an IEP. But, this year has been rocky from the start. Aside from my daughters own shortcomings from typical childhood distractions and her IEP, her teacher has been absent a large chunk of the year, throwing these kids to a sub standard substitute the entire time. In a conference, her teacher was upfront about how the classes grades, as a whole, will drop because he had been gone for so long and he had to catch them up on the curriculum that the substitute horribly failed in keeping them up to date on. I expected a drop and a teacher dedicated to his work. Instead he consistently takes days off and my daughter's grades are dropping drastically. In addition to those concerns, the event planning is terrible, absolutely horrendous! They get dates wrong constantly and are not considerate enough to make regular calls to parents regarding upcoming events. I think, throughout the year thus far, I've received maybe 4 calls. I had very high hopes this year but, I'm sad that I've gotten more disappointment that joy. We'll be going to a Dysart School or hopefully PEC.
Submitted by parent on November 07, 2016

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Submitted by parent on September 29, 2016

I dislike this school the Principal is very rude didn't want to hear us when it came to staff members talking bad to my children very unprofessional I do not agree with the school uniforms at all not with how the school is ran
Submitted by parent on December 16, 2015

My son was a student here for two years before we decided to change schools. The sole reason being the Principal. As some one started in a previous post "sorority sister " is spot on. From outfits to makeup and hair! In no way does she look like a leader of a school. What is even worse is her attitude. She definitely favors certain staff and students and you can tell. If you have a complaint about something within the school she immediately becomes defensive and tries to argue with you. Until Desert Oasis gets another principal I will continue to send my kids elsewhere and recommend others do the same.
Submitted by parent on August 04, 2015

This school does not care about the parents or their children. First day of school 08/04/2015. I get a call that I have to leave work right now because my child is not registered for the after school program even though I paid the $60 registration fee. Lets back up to two weeks before summer(May). I registered my child for preschool because we had just moved to Surprise. My husband and I were told for two weeks that they will get with the director, Mr. Scott on an amount they wanted us to pay because its prorated. We had to go to them every day for the ten days. On the last day of school we were told not to worry about the two weeks my son attended. Now flash forward to Friday July 31st we get a call that we owe almost $600 for the preschool and that has to be paid before he can be enrolled into the after school program. My husband spoke to the director, Mr Scott. and they came up with an agreement to pay $140 a month including the after school program for a couple months. Now two business days later, the first day of Kindergarten, besides as a mom I am stressing out about how he is doing and how fast he is growing up (like all parents do) I get a very demanding call at work that I have to pick up my child because he is not enrolled in the after school program. Obviously confused I inform the woman that he is, I filled out the forms, we spoke with the director, and we paid them $60 for the registration for the after school program, which we have a receipt for. I am then informed that there is nothing they can do and I need to come get him. I of course then tell her that I paid for the registration therefore they need to watch him I cannot loose my job because they do not know how to do theirs. So I had to call the district. I am then told because Mr. Scott did not get a call back from my husband (remember the call from Friday the 31st? It is now two work days later on Tuesday)so that is why my son was kicked from the program. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?! It was already confirmed! Seriously? Do not take your kid here. The test score rankings are horrible and so are the people that work here.
Submitted by parent on July 01, 2015

Just a horrible experience all around! I would not ever ever ever send my child to this school again.
Submitted by parent on August 28, 2014

I love this school. In fact, we are thinking about selling our current home but want to stay in the same school district. I can appreciate the small size of the school and I feel like most of the teachers are kind and really want to be there. My kids love going, to me, that is the first sign of something good. I agree with some of the other comments about the school's inability to find and retain good leadership. They just can't get the principal right. The most recent one feels less like a leader/principal and more like sorority sister. She's pretty obnoxious and unwilling to hear complaints about the school. I don't have to deal with her everyday, for that I'm grateful. That said, I can honestly say the handful of teachers that my children have had have been amazing. I am so impressed by their patience with the children and am more impressed by what they teach. Like I said, my kids have never had anything negative to say about any of their homeroom teachers.
Submitted by parent on July 23, 2014

I wasn't negative, until I couldn't get a Principal and a Teacher to follow through on ANYTHING. When I say involved; I mean involved with my kid, his homework, his assignments, his teacher, HIM! Just like every school, there are certainly some VERY good teachers at DOES; but with the LACK of leadership - I believe even they have struggles. AND I DID volunteer with your PTSA - I was treated like an outcast. They were all rude, not one introduced themselves to me and never extended a welcome when I arrived to do what signed up for. I know MULTIPLE families who are trying to figure out a way to go to a different school...just because they are coming back, doesn't mean it is by CHOICE, it is only by unfortunate circumstance and convenience! Teachers have left and pulled their kids as well... I had HIGH hopes for the school; I really did! I talked other parents into sending their kids there when we enrolled...Very disappointing! I don't want to move my kid around to multiple schools...but I will if it means getting a better education! DOES isn't it.
Submitted by parent on July 23, 2014

My first year was great at Desert Oasis, but the vibe at this school is much different. We had a teacher teaching at our school the whole year that was uncertified, parents were under the impression this teacher became certified. Some teachers were just overall unfriendly to both students and parents. I have been lucky to have two wonderful teachers since I've been at the school. I really hoped this school was going to be a great fit for my family but I can see now my families time at this school will be limited until other arrangements can be made. This school has severe disiplinary issues, never been to a school before with such issues with students. For new families beware this school is part of a 2 school district that is very poor. I just feel alot of families are stuck at this school because of location .
Submitted by other on July 19, 2014

Our family has been a part of DOES since it opened 6 years ago. My husband and I are both very involved at the school. We have seen 3 Principals come and go, and when it comes to leadership, our school just can't seem to get it right. The latest Principal has made some much needed changes, but has also done some major damage as well. She has a group of excellent teachers that could thrive under her leadership, but she has a "spy and report back" policy that allows staff members to tattle on one another. This has caused a lot of tension because it encourages gossip. I have seen the atmosphere of our school go from peaceful to toxic in just one year of having her as Principal. It's been so horrifying to watch. On a brighter note, the school has some excellent teachers! My kids have been blessed beyond measure. The PTSA is outstanding, and makes the school year fun for staff, parents, and students. If you want to make DOES your school, it can work. You just need to stay positive and volunteer. The PTSA and teachers need support!
Submitted by other on July 16, 2014

My children have been attending DOES since it opened it's doors, and I have been very involved since the beginning. The school has a handful of EXCELLENT teachers. My children have been very blessed to have good teachers almost every year. The PTSA is a group of hard working and dedicated parents and community members. PTSA makes the school year fun for everyone! I would love to give the school 5 stars, but our school can not seem to get it right when it comes to leadership. Our new Principal has made a lot of good changes, but she has also tainted the school with unprofessionalism that involves gossip and having a few teachers that 'spy and report back' to her. Our school district is small and in the middle of nowhere, and that's why I think leadership is able to get away with many things like allowing uncertified teachers and paraprofessionals to teach classes for a full day. I have been hoping for change for 6 years now, and still too many rules are being broken. My hope has always been that our school would get leadership in place that cares about our kids. We have so many discipline problems at our school and they are being ignored. It's complete chaos.