I would not recommend this high school. The curriculum lacks a proper plan of study to prepare…read morestudents for college. The school's leadership prioritizes athletics over academics and the well being of students.

Here's an update. My mother died of Covid in February and no one here cared at all. Brother.read more

Going all the back to the early 90"s every family member of mine who attended middle school…read moreattended Brookside for at least a year or two. Myself, 1.5 years, 3 of my children, my brother, my sister and all of our friends. The bullying is HORRIBLE. My son refuses to leave his bedroom now due to social anxiety it was so bad. He is 17. My daughters attended all 3 years and one has situational anxiety, is very anti-social and constantly fears being judged and made fun of by other humans. The other has suffered severe depression and a suicide attempt from being bullied. My brother and I left Brookside and did homeschooling for 7th grade because 6th was such an awful nightmare. We returned to pick school the year Sarasota Middle opened its doors and absolutely loved it. At Brookside it isnt the teachers or staff. They are fine, it's the other students who are primarily middle to lower income and disadvantaged and some of them are outright mean as are their parents. I have a son starting middle school this year and my kids begged me not to send him to Brookside as they fear he will struggle more than they did. 30 years of first hand and up close experiences and I say if you have another option, use it first.

Great school with great kids. The teachers teach and model respect and responsibility. The ESE…read moredepartment is on top of things and makes sure that IEP/504 accommodations are made available. Love having my son at SMA!

We love our CDS family. Great community of teachers and parents that really care. We're on our…read moresecond year!

Kids have a safe environment to learn that is project oriented, with a low number of students per…read moreteacher ratio.

This school is just AWFUL. The staff is extremely ignorant, neglectful, and favoritism is a big…read moreproblem in this school, Mr.Gwatney says the children will get nowhere in life, he says they'll live like cavemen, and says they deserve to sit in a windowless room staring at a screen all day and he says they don't deserve to be outside, and he says they'll get cancer from eating chips.

We've moved a lot, so my kid's been to a few differnt schools: Imagine Palmer Ranch, Bay Haven, and…read moreLakewood Ranch Prep Academy. Honestly, this school is just as good. The teachers are great and always quick to respond. You can always get someone on the phone or email and get things sorted out fast. They also have a program Hawks for advansed kids. What really stands out here is how they handle communication with parents. It's way better then anywhere else. Every time I had a question, it got answered in minutes, not hour. Also, big props to the woman who answer the phone at the front desk - she's awesome! Seriously, I never seen a school do this part so good. And about grades - if a kid don't wanna learn, they won't do well anywhere. If they're motivated, they'll find a way to learn, even in the middle of no where with no books or teachers. The school's job isn't to motivate them - that's up to the parents.

At first glance I loved the school. I loved the big classrooms and combined grades and the fact…read morethat they offered education through high school. But after having my children in the school for a year I was greatly disappointed. The teachers are very sweet especially in lower elementary but I feel like my children learned almost nothing. They complained that the classroom was noisy and it was hard to concentrate. There was zero emphasis on classical literature, somehow, reading "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" qualifies as sufficient for their classroom literature. The kids sat on the floor all day and my children complained that their backs were hurting. Many of the classic Montessori manipulatives were rarely used. There was no music class. Rarely did they do art. My children, even the upper elementary child, never brought home home-work. The Christmas program was honestly the most atrocious thing I have ever seen. The children stood outside in mosquito infested grounds for an hour in shepherds costumes and literally did nothing but stand there as props while the principal and pastor relived their fantasies of being stars and sang all the songs. There was open fire in the torches and straw everywhere. I was on the edge of my seat as children filed closely past the open flame. I just knew any moment the whole stage was going up in flames including baby Jesus, who was a real newborn. I honestly almost stood up and said something in the middle of the show it was so nerve racking. This school needs to put the children's safety before their own desire of having their own personal American Idol for themselves. In that moment, I realized, if this huge issue is an oversight, then what about all the smaller things. I feel like this is a terrible place if you want your kids to get a good education. If you are just wanting somewhere to stick your kids where they learn about the Bible, but education or safety is not a priority, then by all means, spend the $11,000 per student to send them there. I feel like i really got ripped off. I feel like my children are no more educated than they were a year ago, in fact, I feel like they actually regressed.