My experiences with Avery Elementary, Canton, Georgia (Alpharetta, Midway: lawyer, house) - (GA) - City-Data Forum

JPCstear · 10-13-2008, 03:54 AM

I just came across this site, and am hoping to help anyone trying to make a decision about their child's schooling in Canton, Georgia...specifically Avery Elementary.
I have four children at Avery Elementary. Last year was the school's first year open, and three of my children had fine teachers. However, one of my children had a first grade teacher that used tactics such as witholding bathroom breaks for discipline, calling the children names such as "baby", and singling out children who have slight learning disabilities. After many repeated attempts to notify the principal, Georgann Toop, my concerns went ignored. I had to pull my child out of that class halfway through the year to homeschool. After those experiences, my child is not the same. My child was forced to forego bathroom breaks, coming home many times after sitting hours in wet pants. After speaking with other parents at a later time, we realized there were many children in this class who were neglected by this teacher. All of these parents insist, as myself, that we attempted many times to notify the principal of this. If you have a child here, or are thinking of changing to this school, please be careful. Pay attention to your child's comments. And, stand firm against this administration. Our children deserve better.

BobKovacs · 10-13-2008, 04:55 AM

Sounds like an issue with one teacher and one principal-not the whole school. I'd be sitting in the superintendent's office until the matter was resolved if I were you.

graywolf73 · 10-13-2008, 03:19 PM

I'm so sorry to hear about your child. There was a very similar incident back in Florida where a teacher voted a child out of class due to his disability. I agree with BobKovacs but I know as a mother I would probably be in jail right now. Because if that happened to my child I'd be at the school with a baseball bat waiting for her in the parking lot after school!

lastminutemom · 10-14-2008, 04:36 AM

You can (and should) file a complaint with the system superintendent and simultaneously with the
The Home of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission

However, I wouldn't file the complaint, unless other parents will back you up and do it simultaneously.

I would, even without support from other parents, write the Superintendent and CC the entire school board.

The largest issue here is that the Principal ignored your complaints/concerns.

mellowgold · 01-15-2009, 11:34 AM

That post about believing the child over the adult is so ugly and they MUST not have children who have had any problems learning something new! How disgusting and unintelligent!!!

It's so interesting that you posted the experience you had w/ Avery the way you did because I too had a very bad experience with a first grade teacher. I actually ended up moving away w/ much relief to change my son's school. I changed his school in January and he finish the year with a wonderful teacher at Midway Elem and passed the first grade. I had high hopes for Avery considering my son would be starting the first year of opening and have a fresh start..but unfortunatly we did not have this experience. Not only the teacher but also the nurse would call me almost everyday to say my son couldnt breath and was sick (although he had more inhalers etc then he's ever had at the school b/c of the calls) and spoke in very technical terms about his health that his doctor said they wouldnt be able to diagnose at school..I would bring him to the doc and they would say he's fine. Then b/c my son had a barely visible bruise on his arm someone in the staff called child services on me and I had someone come to my home to question me. It was insane. I've never felt so violated and harrassed. All in all it was a nightmare and I"m glad we got him into a wonderful school. This may have been an isolated experience but to see what you wrote really got to me. I had no idea how the schools are so controlling and really don't help when a child has a hard time learning something!! I wish Cherokee had a Charter school! Thank you so much for posting your comment.

mellowgold · 01-26-2009, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ailin

No matter what any child is doing they should never be kept from the bathroom until they wet their pants! That is cruelty and not appropriate punishment!
Do you have children? Would you withhold the bathroom until they wet their pants? Would you approve of someone else doing this to your child?
I would be absolutely livid if this as done to my little girl. A bathroom break is not recess and is not something that should be taken away. The bathroom is not a priviledge, its a right.
In my opinion the teacher should be fired and if you found a good lawyer I'm sure you could sue the teacher and possibly the school for employeeing that person.

And by the way, we should trust our children. That you would distrust your child when he or she comes to you for help speaks volumes.

Thank you! That was very well put. I agree 100%.

Summergirl123 · 03-04-2009, 09:42 AM

I had to comment - just looking up the website for Avery and saw these posts. First - to the OP - I am so sorry that your child has been treated this way. I would be in the office of the board of directors or the local press until I got some satisfactory answers. But, with that said, my experience at Avery has been much different and much, much more positive. I've had three kids in schools from North Carolina, to Illinois, and now Georgia. My oldest is a senior and has had a very good public school education. My middle started out with a very bad teacher in NC and I must say the things you describe do go on. Sad but true. We had a first year teacher that was so immature (only child herself) and very young that she was just cruel to these little kids and I saw it for myself. Problem - I was a newer mom then and didn't really know what I should do. End result - middle child did fine once we moved to Illinois schools but he did struggle with reading for a while.

At avery, I have a first grader so I'd love to know the name of the teacher - even some initials. We've had an absolutely awesome Kindergarten teacher and his first grade teacher isn't my favorite but she is a good teacher. IMO she doesn't fully understand the development of a 1st grader and expects a little too much from them - but that is just my opinion. Overall it has been a good year. I also don't think the school is drab at all. I think there are some great things that the school is trying to accomplish - Bingo Night was lots of fun and we've had breakfast with the Grinch twice. I've also heard tons of great things about the school - but if my child was asked to hold it until it got to the point that he wet his pants - I'd be in the face of the principle or I'd be sitting in that class myself. Take action - don't let this go on for another student. But, also, don't condemn the school for one bad teacher. Remember the saying 1 bad apple -but it really doesn't spoil the whole bunch - does it?

mjones0428 · 03-04-2010, 09:18 AM

I'm really nervous for the new school year after reading these posts! we live in canton and i have been driving my 4 1/2 year old to a Christian academy in Alpharetta for the last 2 years. We love it there but we now have another child and we can not afford to have our oldest continue going to the private Alpharetta one for kindergarten this fall. we know all the teachers there and my husband and i both have worked there too so we are very comfortable knowing our child is in great hands and learning the best she can there. so now that i am looking into where she would go here in canton under a public school, we are in avery district.....after reading the posts i'm very very nervous about her going there! but if you are in the avery district isn't that your only option for them to attend? i didn't think you could pick or choose the public school to send your child. i will still drop off and pick her up so a bus route isn't a concern of mine. we are at exit 19 off 575, there are a few schools right around here, but i really need to know if we can pick or choose....and if it has to be avery....then how can your mind be put to ease after reading these posts? our daughter has learned so much from the private Christian school that i'm afraid now all that will be thrown out the window if she goes to a school that the teachers are not so caring or the facility is not so well kept. not using bleach? what? that can't be true! help! i need to figure out what to do before its too late to get her into any school for this fall!

MovedfromFL · 03-04-2010, 10:34 AM

Wow, I am saddened that these types of things happen in today's classroom. I am a former 1st grade teacher turned stay at home mom for now. Back in FL, I would have never, ever dreamed of doing those kinds of things in my classroom. In fact, my Principal would have escorted me from the building if anthing like you described went on. A teacher like that should NOT be in education at all.

My husband is a teacher here and we are appalled at the things that go on in Georiga's schools. There is a complete lack of Principal leaderhip and basic competency. I had a really good Principal back in FL and she knew how to run a school. Here, even the most basic safety standards are overlooked. I could go on and on with specific examples (esp one where the teacher should in fact have been arrested for breaking the law, but the Principal looked the other way), but the bottom line is I do not want my young kids going to the schools here. We are moving back to Florida this summer.

I can't imagine why a principal would not be responsive to repeated concerns by parents. Your next recourse would be to take it to the superintendent. That happened occasionally in FL and boy did that shake things up.

BobKovacs · 03-04-2010, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjones0428

after reading the posts i'm very very nervous about her going there! but if you are in the avery district isn't that your only option for them to attend? i didn't think you could pick or choose the public school to send your child. i will still drop off and pick her up so a bus route isn't a concern of mine. we are at exit 19 off 575, there are a few schools right around here, but i really need to know if we can pick or choose....and if it has to be avery....then how can your mind be put to ease after reading these posts? our daughter has learned so much from the private Christian school that i'm afraid now all that will be thrown out the window if she goes to a school that the teachers are not so caring or the facility is not so well kept. not using bleach? what? that can't be true! help! i need to figure out what to do before its too late to get her into any school for this fall!

You're reading the rants of one parent who had an issue with a school- it's by no means the norm. We live in Cherokee County, and have been thrilled with the schools here- and that's coming from someone who left the highly-touted schools in NJ.

I know a number of people who have kids at Avery, and they're all very happy with the school. When this thread first started several years ago, I talked to a few of them about it, and they too shook it off as some isolated incident, as they've had no such issues.

With regard to selecting the school you'll attend- no, you can not- your kids must attend the school you're zoned for. Below is a link to a map of school boundaries, so you can see what school your house is zoned for.

http://portal.cherokee.k12.ga.us/departments/planning/School%20Boundaries%20200910/Elementary%20Boundaries.pdf (broken link)

Depending on where you are off Exit 19, you'll either be zoned for Avery or Macedonia, or if you're on the West side of 575, for Hasty.

And as far as not using bleach- yes, they may not be using bleach, but they are using other disinfectants. Bleach isn't the ideal cleaner to be using in the first place.