Kate Sullivan Elementary School

927 Miccosukee Road

School District

Leon
Grade

PK, 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 August 10, 2019

Disappointing. Sad for my children who felt poorly about themselves when leaving.
Submitted by parent on July 14, 2019

Our family loves Kate Sullivan. The students, teachers, administration - all are wonderful! The classrooms are wonderful and children are given everything they need to succeed!
Submitted by parent on March 31, 2017

I am an alumni of this school so I know all the good and bad things about this school. Three of my four children attend k.Sullivan now. My oldest is in 4th now and she loves it. She had pretty good luck with teachers so far but I cannot say the same about my younger two. I had an issue with my daughter's kindergarten teacher (ongoing for two years) and I was told by the vice principal to basically take it up with the teAcher! Bullying in my son's first grade class that they refuse to do anything about
Submitted by parent on August 27, 2015

My son attended 3rd grade at KS, after having had K-2 in a great school in another state. Almost immediately he began to complain of being bored, other children being disruptive, older children bullying him in the hallways (actual physical contact). I passed this off as "new school blues" and assured him it would get better. Then he was threatened by two older boys who were just hanging out in the restroom during class time. Two trips to the school to resolve this. I wasn't too worried about the actual education because he brought home A/B report cards. The teacher raved about him at conferences. Now I find out, after deciding to homeschool my son, he is not prepared for 4th grade math. I don't blame the teacher, she did the best she could with what she had. The studen/teacher ratio is too high, too many children with behavior and learning disabilities in one class and in the school period. Physical Education is non-existant, as is any real recess time. It's not good or realistic for children to be cooped up in a classroom for 6 hours with no break.The physical building itself is a disaster as it IS the oldest school building in Tallahassee. This school district, and state in general, place far too much emphasis on testing and not real teaching. If your child is above the curve, they will not get what they need to continue their learning, as the focus is on the children that are considered "at risk". If I had it to do all over again, I would not have moved from our home state or taken my son away from a school he enjoyed and actually learned at.
Submitted by parent on August 20, 2015

Ms. Nesmith and her staff have been informative and friendly since day one. Their guidance has been invaluable to myself and my husband since it has been years since I have had to navigate the school system with a little one. Gary has had some difficult challenges to overcome in his young life and I feel a sincere concern from her and her staff that is most comforting to our family.
Submitted by parent on June 26, 2015

Teachers of this school are not properly educated on how to physiologically guide small kids. They put a lot of stress on kids. In some cases they treat kids like adult. My son always complained that teachers are not fair. They give privileges to the students they like. If a student is not happy or not listening or did something wrong, teachers keep him isolated from other kids in class room, lunch or play ground. This is completely against kids psychology and mental growth. I had to take an article on this and gave it to my son's teacher and the principal. I didn't feel that things were improved after I wanted them to learn something from that article. If a student has little bit of behavior problem, that student may be violent by the end of the year following the ways school treats them. I never felt that Kate Sullivan equally cares all students. I found most school staffs are very unprofessional in terms of communication. They rarely teach students some general courtesy. I really doubt if they maintain a very kids friendlily study environment in class room and school activities. Kids are always on mental stress.
Submitted by parent on January 02, 2015

Its a fun and well educated school , I just love the staff how they have so much joy and workmanship.
Submitted by parent on June 30, 2014

My daughter will be attending this school and I heard it was wonderful, but after reading the reviews I can only wonder if the negative are negative for the right reasons. I see someone speaking about the out of zone children which my child is as if this were 1965 or something but I am sure that the school board has realized that bringing out of zone children means bringing diversity and studies have shown that children being in diverse environments improve their learning skills on all parts and to all children. I have studied child care for years. I am excited to have my child go there, I just hope she does not encounter those parents with small minds. This will be a great learning experience for her although she is already on the top of her game being above average in all her skills since before she stepped foot in anyone's school. She will be an asset to the school. My rating on this school is strictly on the good things I have heard and not on the negative people with small minds.
Submitted by parent on August 26, 2013

Warm, caring teachers, friendly surrounding neighborhoods (so classmates are often involved in the same extracurricular activities, too), super-involved parents. Kate Sullivan Elementary has made a strong effort to keep arts education, recess, regular PE, and other enrichment programs that add real educational depth (even a vegetable garden by the K-1 building) to the school in the face of ever-increasing pressure to teach to the standardized tests, and it works. My son is in 2nd grade and has been here from the beginning, and he loves his school!
Submitted by parent on September 27, 2012

I too had a little anxiety about sending my Kindergartener to public school. I can honestly say that the teachers genuinely care about the students. I really like that my son's teacher loves reading. She has made it fun for her students, which has made learning to read enjoyable. My son is reading as though he's been doing so for years. He loves school and that makes me extremely happy.
Submitted by parent on February 15, 2012

Kate Sullivan Elementary School is award-winning and it shows! The teachers and staff are very professional and experienced. The school has been going strong since 1948.