We attended Raquel Borras' Red Carpet Premiere for her documentary "I Hear You, Gen Z!" on Thursday evening. What a beautiful high school campus. An intimate reception was held upstairs on the outdoor patio. Plenty of seating and the layout was very welcoming. The film screening was shown in the theatre. There was a short walk between the two spaces. The grounds were well maintained and the restrooms were close proximity to the theatre. I'll be sure to check out future events at this venue. read more

Francis Parker School - Elementary Schools Near Me - San Diego, California

The facility is beautiful. Most of the teachers are really good. The administration does not care about you. Sometimes they respond to emails and sometimes they don't. The head of the administration is a political figure. If you're Jewish, the school does not care about you. They don't care whether you stay or you go. They don't care about anti-Semitic incidents on campus. Anti-Israel is not anti-Jewish for them. You will just yell into the void when bad things happen. There is zero accountability. I'm feeling very poorly about a school I was very excited to have my child join. If you're left leaning and hate Jews, this is the right place for you. read more

Don't go here. I know and have friends who used to go here. The teachers are nice but the people in charge, the administration, is not. They don't do anything about bullying and every anonymous report sent in is ingored. Most of the great reviews you'll see are from people who knew this school back when it deserved its reputation. It's also expensie and not worth the money. read more

Our experience at Parker was at the lower school for a few years. We came in before COVID and left after COVID. That gave us a distinct view of the 2 leadership teams (the former and the current). As a family of average means, we were able to obtain financial aid for our daughter to attend. The teachers were excellent for the most part. A few rotten eggs, but overall great. Younger kids' science and digital design being the least impressive of the teachers. Our only gripe was what we perceived as the teachers' tendency to hold the more advanced students back to let the others catch up. It was like they wanted every child to be at the same level as to not make some students feel inferior. They should have been encouraging all students to reach their maximum potential, but they were not. Some of the admin staff seemed to always be angry and bitter - the opposite of what you would expect at a prestigious private elementary school. It was like these admin staff members didn't enjoy being around children. Perhaps they were just worn out and ready to retire. The variety of classes at the school is tremendous - unparalleled - foreign languages, drama, design classes that incorporated other special classes, entrepreneurship woven in here and there. Top notch. Where they fall down is their leadership. The former principal was outstanding. His replacement is not. I think they hoped she would grow into her position as she was the former assistant principal, but that did not happen. She has the leadership capabilities of a fence post. She leads on emotion and over-stressing every DEI talking point to the nth degree as the solution to any problem. It's all optics and no substance. The former principal gave you confidence when he spoke that there wasn't any situation he could not handle while being respectful and listening to students, parents, teachers, and staff. His replacement does not inspire the same confidence at all. Quite the opposite. The new principal has a cold demeanor that reflected on the school not feeling (to us) like a true community anymore after she took over. She plays favorites with students and their families. Reactions to school issues were always way over the top for what the issue was. Instead of letting kids be kids, the solution of the new leadership seemed to always be to ban the "problematic" activity. Particularly with athletic activities - banning the game of "tag" on the playground. I mean, it's "tag"! How does this teach young children to work out their problems and find an agreeable solution? It does not. It's lazy leadership to the detriment of the students' development. It didn't seem this way at first, but our experience "evolved" into a typical expensive private school in many ways. The gossipy, inauthentic, carping women that include and exclude families into their group as they please are obnoxious. Even their husbands appear to not enjoy their company. They post the most narcissistic, shallow, and self-absorbed crap on their social media and pretend they are good people. It's actually hilarious. I refused to gossip with them and we quickly got shut out of their social circle because of it. Fine by us. There were some mature adults, but the mean girl moms ran the social aspect of the school. This translated to sometimes uncomfortable parent volunteer duties with that crew. It was evident that these women passed their opinions of other families on to their children while reinforcing their families' perceived superiority. My daughter saw girls that were very friendly to her in her first year become increasingly distant in the years after for no apparent reason. Just let kids be kids without teaching them to constantly judge their peers. Children will have plenty of time as adults to do that if they wish. The typical far-left influences in the curriculum are very prevalent, but I expect that is the case for most non-religious affiliated private schools in Southern California. Traditional holiday song lyrics are edited as to not offend anyone - just silly. No day off for Veterans' Day, but days off for every other group's holidays - Diwali, MLK, Juneteenth, etc. Not Columbus Day, but Indigenous People's Day instead. Riiiiiight. My caucasian daughter never took note of people's skin color until the school essentially forced her to. The school is constantly referring to race in most academic discussions. They call it "color brave" (instead of "color blind"). Sure. It's exhausting and gives the kids who are not minorities a guilt complex and self-hating attitude - like there's something inherently wrong with them because of their fair complexion. If you're looking for a quality private elementary school in the San Diego area, look somewhere else. A job promotion ended up taking our family to a new area and we were happy to leave this mess of a school behind. read more

This school is so disrespectful of our neighborhood not only do they rent out their fields to other schools on the weekends they also took away parking on our street (which has limited street parking for everybody already) to build another exit. They are so noisy and we never get any peace and quiet. They weren't so bad 20 yrs ago living across from them but they are building more and their students aren't supposed to be parking on the street now because of all the construction they are. I can't wait to move! read more

I went to Francis Parker Schools San Diego in the 1980s on a scholarship. I wasn't a rich kid. The PE coach and later Lower School Dean was a guy named Mr. Glassie, and he decided he hated me. One time I hurt my arm in a weird accident where I was running, and someone opened the door. I was told to see him, and he didn't even look at my arm. He just turned to me and said, "go see a doctor. I don't care about you." When I was in fifth grade, he told me that no one in the school wanted me there, "we don't want you." They always weeded out the scholarship kids. Most of us transferred to other schools. read more

For my 400th review, I thought I'd write about one of the greatest places in this entire city. I've been lucky to have taught at this place for the past two years, and I'm going to miss it so much as I move to Illinois this summer. Francis Parker School is an amazing, amazing college prep school, one of the best in the country, and the top in the county (yeah, yeah, you're also important, Bishop's, Pacific Ridge, and La Jolla Country Day, but this is Parker's moment). Francis Parker is a great school, focused on meeting the needs--emotional, educational, social, and more--of its students, who are its primary concern. I was thrilled to be offered a job at a school that took learning and growth so seriously for its students, and more than a little intimidated at the skills of my coworkers. But I soon learned that Parker really cares about its students individually. Yes, it's a college prep school (and it costs quite a pretty penny), but it's about finding the right college for your student. It's not just getting into an Ivy League school. Parker recognizes that students are different, and encourages its students to pick the *right* school for them. That blew me away, and comforted me as a new teacher. The student body is terrific, the classrooms are brand new and state of the art, the faculty is exceptional (and are clearly very attractive, not biased!), and the entire places is dedicated to creating a small communty, a family of people working together to improve the knowledge and skills and connections here in San Diego. I've had so many amazing memories here, from crazy lectures that ended in hands-on invasions of fellow classes to understand fascism to crazy sing-alongs to student pranks. I'm lucky to have been a part of a school that very much cares how its students grow, and not just in terms of prestige. And those kids are pretty lucky too. :) read more

Good ole' FWP. I graduated here a looooooooooong time ago, and it has changed greatly. What I thought was a great school has turned into one of the finest schools in the country. When I graduated, Parker was the Number One school in San Diego County; our graduating class was very proud of that. The teachers were invested in each student and the sports were "scrappy". I now visit the campus, and go to alumni events, and see how the school has evolved. The campus is a site to behold, the gym incredible (I think I donated enough to buy a brick...), and the facilities fantastic. The new library would make Doris Larson proud. My three sisters and I went to Parker for a bunch of years. When I have kids, I am sending them there. If you have kids, and want them to have an excellent college prep education, I would highly suggest FWP. read more

I was a student here, as were both my siblings. This is the one school in San Diego that truly prepares you for the world of academia and beyond. This school instilled in me the importance of an education, camaraderie with classmates and eventually colleagues, and the great love of reading. If and when I have children, they will absolutely be attending this fine educational institution, even if i will mean I end up having to take out a second mortgage on my home. Shouldn't alumni get a discount for a legacy? ;o) Thank you Francis Parker, for everything you have instilled in me and prepared me for. I am truly grateful. read more

After reading some of these crazy reviews I felt compelled to share our experience. We have had a great experience at Parker. Did I drink the Koolaid? No. Is it perfect, No. That being said my daughter has received an excellent education and she is completely prepared for college, both emotionally and academically. I have never felt that she was overloaded with homework, she plays 2 sports each year and is able to keep up without issue. She is not a procrastinator, nor is she a super intense student. She is a middle of the road kid who enjoys her social and athletic life as much, if not more than her academic one. Not all of her teachers have been excellent, but not all my bosses have been either. That is life. The ones who have been excellent more than made up for the others. What I like best about Parker is what a nice community it is. They offer a great array of art programs, clubs, robotics, athletics, etc. There is place and community for every child if they are willing to try different things. The parents are nice to one another and the students are nice to one another. If I had to do it all over again, I would choose the same path for my daughter. It has been a good fit for her and I am certain that she has had a better experience than if she had taken the path to one of the other private schools or to the public school in our neighborhood. read more

Francis Parker School. What is there to say other than its the finest college prep school in San Diego and maybe the whole Country. I graduated from there in 2006. I was also a lifer meaning I attended parker my whole life from pre-school til graduating high school. This expierence you recieve from Parker is one of a kind, they great faculty, administrators, coaches, facilities. And now with the new campus its not only a great school but it has state of the art classrooms. Parker will strive to give your children a memorable expierence along with a great education which will prepare them for life's journey after high school. Parker will always have a special place in my heart and I hope one day I can send my kids their. I also wanna say I'll never forget- Mrs. Brown-6th grade math, Mr.Ghroni-7th Grade Science, Mrs. Robinson -Drama, Mrs.Z- P.E. Coach , Coach Morrison- greatest football coach, Mrs. Dosick- Learning center . Mr Mitchell - principal, Mr. McIntrye-Headmaster - I know i forget some of the other teachers who made an impact on my life but I love you all. read more

This is college prep at it's finest. Fancy uniforms, picturesque campus, soccer moms in their Lexus SUVs and a host of great teachers. I heard it's now more expensive to send your kid here than it is to send them to most colleges...ouch. Will it get them into a good college? Probably. Also, for all you 14y.o. Yelpers out there, it's harder to get into than an 1997 N'Sync concert so good luck. It was a good school in 1999 when I graduated. I know it's still a great school now! read more

I attended this school from kindergarten through High School. Today, I am a successful artist with extensive international experience and a psychotherapist with a very full practice. I am well known in my community and my work as a clinician is highly regarded. Because I deeply value education, it feels important for me to add an additional perspective to the other Yelp reviews. For starters, in all my years of attending Parker, as a student with a mensa level IQ and neurodiversity--I found that the school was very poorly equipped to meet the needs of both neurodiverse and gifted students, on all levels: elementary, middle school and high school. While I was an outstanding student, taking all AP classes in High School and in several positions of leadership on an extracurricular level, I was often discriminated against by impatient and archaic teachers (some who have been in the Parker system for decades, to the point of obvious, early onset dementia). Why was I discrimated against? Because the school was not equipped to support students with learning differences or the unique needs of gifted students, as well. My experience with many of the faculty could be summarized by the phrase "mediocrity rules." Many teachers just couldn't be botherd to support a student who might need a little additional help, despite documented neurodiversity. What was worse included being scapegoated and shamed in class, when I would ask questions for additional clarity or depth that also benefitted the class (often Parker teachers would stick to a formula and move quickly through each class period, with very little room left for inquiry and dialogue). Despite summoning the courage to raise my voice as an articulate young woman in class, I often got shut down by my male teachers--who would do this quite routinely to female students in general, while prioritizing male students and their needs. Many of my male teachers in High School were blatantly sexist and one teacher in particular, hit on me overtly, to the point of wanting to offer me rides home and would call my personal phone number often "just to talk"(he had my number for the sake of tutoring). He would also offer me gifts on school grounds, which made me very uncomfortable. Unfortunately, Parker has a history of male teachers being inapropriate with female students both on the middle school and high school levels. This culture only reinforces archaic gender norms, rape culture and a lack of safety in general for many female students. A young woman was raped by a then Parker middle school teacher who later relocated to another high school but was not fired. The consequences were devestating for her. There is also a culture of incredible academic pressure on all levels at this school, which contributed to many students being afflicted by pervasive eating disorders, various mental health issues and even suicide (which impacted my class directly junior year). All the years of schooling at Parker, which was supposed to be an ideal match for me, given my talents, neurodiversity and giftedness--really left a lot to be desired. To this day, I regret that my family didn't investigate other exceptional schools in San Diego, such as the Bishops school or La Jolla Country Day School. Parents be warned--your children deserve better, especially if they are gifted or neurodiverse. Parker is not a school that welcomes inclusivity and diveristy, rather just the opposite. It is an environment that very much encourages conformity and political conservatism to the highest degree (this too was alarming). I'll never forget having my AP history High School teacher encouraging all the girls in class, on the first day of school, to invest in a blender if they wanted to be successful in life. He was not joking. Rumor has it, the young woman who committed suicide my junior year, was being harassed by a male teacher who was obsessed with her. She was being courted by Harvard and Stanford, due to her academic excellence. The priniciple at the time did nothing to memorialize her, despite the fact that she was beloved in the school community and a dear friend of his son's. After promising to erect a memorial in her honor, the principle and planning committee did nothing. So much for a "family friendly" school, which is an ideal that Parker promotes all the time in their advertising. In my experience, it was just the opposite when a family member died. Nothing was left in her honor and there weren't any services provided for grief stricken and traumatized students, who desperately needed it. By no means did this school function on an institutional level as being visionary in its organization or by creating a safe and open enviroment for emerging thought leaders. After transferring to the top arts high school in the country, I finally had an opportunity to see what a true, diverse college prep school curriculum feels like and offers. Parker certainly pales in comparison.Please do your research! read more