I love this school soooooooooooooo much I transferred from another school and my transfer has been…read moresmooth

I am currently in 8th grade, but I recently transferred and I'm no longer a student at Marshall…read more Firstly, the environment is mostly okay. Though, the bathrooms are rarely ever cleaned and have spider webs everywhere. A lot of the toilets and sinks don't work. The thing that bothers me the most about the bathrooms, is that they are always locked. I get that they want to prevent students from skipping, but they already have school monitors who go in each bathroom stall during class time. There is a bathroom in every building yet students can't even use them. There is also never soap. Now, the cafeteria. It is so small and cramped, especially for the 7th and 8th graders who have lunch at the same school. I never brought lunches, so I always went to the cafe to get food. The lines were always so long. By the time I got my food, my friends would be outside and I would run out of time. At one point, I just stopped eating in general. When I didn't eat, it would be impossible to find a seat both outside and inside. Why even build such a small school for so many students. Another thing that ruined the experiment, was the teachers. Yes, I did create some genuine bonds with my teachers, one of them being Mr. Murillo. I am glad that I had him as my 7th grade history teacher. Sadly, most of my teachers weren't like that. I will not specify which teachers, but some of them treat the students unfair and are very rough on them. One day I was in art class and there was this boy who would make fun of me for my weight, and my body hair. The teacher never took it seriously even though the boy was known for disrupting the class every chance he got. Yeah I admit, sometimes the teacher would send him out of class or email his parents, but nothing was ever fixed. Now, all I did was throw a sponge toward him, a sponge. Nothing hard, and I didn't even aim at his face. The boy even threw the sponge at my face before that. She yelled at me and humiliated me in front of the whole class, knowing how shy I am. She sent both of us to the math class next door. I was trying so hard not to cry, everyone in the class was staring at me, including my friends and my bullies. The teacher in there wasn't nice either, she yelled at me for not facing the right way. I never talked back to either of those teachers or anything. My art teacher even emailed my mom, luckily, my mom defended me. Once I got home, I couldn't stop crying. My heart was broken, I treated my teacher with respect and she does that in return. It was one mistake. Speaking of bullies, this part completely ruined me. During 6th and 7th grade, I was already having a rough time which caused my grades and my confidence to drop. After the pandemic, I became very shy and had a hard time communicating with people. When I would try and make friends, I would end up making people hate me. I tried to fix it but nothing worked. A lot of the 8th and 7th graders didn't like me. It had been happening since 6th grade, and I couldn't take it. In November of 2023, I tried to end my life. Fortunately, I survived. Things went fine until maybe around February. Until this girl and her friends would make fun of my friends and I every time they saw us. I will admit that I said stuff back, but I was frustrated. One of the girls made a lie about me destroying her back pack and her mom and my mom ended up having an argument. The next week, the same girl assaulted me. everyone laughed and cheered her on. That's when I decided that I didn't want to spend another year at Marshall. It made me mad knowing that the staff did basically nothing. All they did was have me talk to some of them and then the moved my seat in one of my classes. I was upset. I told them beforehand everything that she had said to me. She called me slurs, and would make fun of me in front of everyone during PE class. Adults always want us to "ignore it" until something happens. They don't care. I sobbed so much. Why would they let that happen. They never cared, at all. They didn't even care about how I felt. People recorded me, and they didn't do anything about it. I felt like I lost. I still had to go to school the week after and I was so nauseated. I couldn't even enjoy the field trip we went on toward the end of school. People kept trying to say things to me, but I just couldn't say a word back. It had a big impact on me, I would constantly try and starve myself and I would hurt myself. I really wanted to like the school but it genuinely ruined me. I am the only one out of my two brothers to not be promoted from Marshall. It's not only me who had to deal with it. My oldest brother did too. Please, do not go here. :(

Granted, my son only had his first day of school as a freshman, but he loved the school already…read more I went to orientation with him, and we both fell in love with the dedicated staff and the large and very diverse student body. The campus is old and showing its age, but just as with any school, it's the software that matters.

As someone somewhere sometimes and always has often said, high school and other milestone…read moreexperiences in life is what you make of it. As the mother of two sons who have successfully graduated with high honors at this school, I come away from here having generally positive thoughts and feelings about their particular high school journeys. In total, I was a Millikan parent for 6 years from 2017 thru 2023. During these years, I saw them transition to Zoom instruction during Covid, then return to in-person classes. It is a large school of about 3,000-4000 students. There are many options for A-G requirement courses (English, Math, Science etc), many AP courses available to choose from (such as Human Geography, Computer Science, French, German etc.) and various electives offered (such as Dance, Jazz, Band, Vocal, Photography, Museum studies, etc). I can speak highly of the COMPASS program in which my First-Born was a part of--allowing him to be surrounded by creative oriented peers and teachers. And I can also speak highly of the PEACE program which my Youngest was a part of allowing him to be surrounded by social justice oriented peers and teachers. Both programs allow for high achieving goals as you can choose to take as many AP courses as you want at your discretion and ability level. The cost of taking the test for the students is $5.00 (the district pays for the difference which is something over $100) and allows the student to take the commendable risk of taking the test without too much pressure cost wise--and the rewards of passing is actual college credit that not only saves time but helps stamp down costs for college. As parents, we're particularly grateful for these benefits. They have career counseling, tutoring services, and they help with college applications, filling out the FAFSA etc. I also believe they have a Food Pantry to help out students with food insecurity and other services offered...please contact the school directly to inquire about these services and take advantage of them as needed. We're not a sports family, but they also have a variety of sports--some highly recognized and many of these athletes win scholarships. Are there down sides? Yes. As with any school, I'm sure, not every class and/or teacher is talented or dedicated. For the highly motivated student, the need to effectively navigate these situations (often with palpable frustration) is necessary. Some teachers are called to be teachers, some see it as just a job and a paycheck. I wish it didn't have to be that way, but that's just the truth and a real part of the experience. I wish the Administration kept a better eye on these situations to make sure they hire the best staff for the benefit of the students--but that will be an on-going issue, at this school and anywhere else. The vaping...you definitely hear stories. And the school feels that locking bathrooms is a way to discourage this situation--except now students have the challenge to find restrooms that are open. Definitely not ideal. And I'm sure there are many other negative experiences and stories out there. The existence and absence of drama is a personal one and really just depends on the student. The school does have a uniform policy--not terribly difficult to follow and frankly, cost effective. Overall advice: research the surrounding high schools since LBUSD does have a School of Choice policy. Attend the Site Nights and feel out the fit for your student. Some feel more right than others. Millikan, at least for us, was the best fit.

My 3 daughters are currently enrolled in this school, one senior and two sophomores. It's by far…read morethe best HS in Long Beach. All the students have access to team sports. The school has solid academic instruction (2008 academic decathlon champs) and has a good mix of AP and honors classes. Tuition is by far the most affordable in the area. Student population is less that 400. It may not be in the best area in Long Beach but in the fours year that my eldest daughter has gone there, she has always been safe.

I like how the review of my school is by someone who did not even go there. I got a quality…read moreeducation and met people who have been friends ever since. The neighborhood is not the best but it was a great four years!

Worst years of my life here. Food is terrible, staff is awful. Teachers' favorite children who…read moredon't put any effort into their work. System sucks, teachers who can't teach go here, they ignore issues, and one of the science teachers has a case of touching a minor's chest. Would not recommend going here.

I am an 8th grader who goes here and I hate it. Some of the staff are rude to students for no…read morereason. I do appreciate how some staff members focus on mental health but most are just rude. I love all my teachers but one of them goes out of their way to embarrass students. Some teachers help students feel comfortable and they help me get my grades up. There is a lot of bullying and drama. The bullying does get called out but the bullies always get a way to stay and never expelled. There is so much drama between everyone and fights at least once a month. I really want to be able to learn while having fun but the people there (not teachers) who destroy my mental health. Also, there is a teacher who has rumors about him and how he made a student uncomfortable and it has been on the news and he is still at the school. I do not recommend sending your kid to this school unless you want them to have bad mental health. Honestly, this school is okay but not amazing, there is some good parts if your kid hangs out with the right crowd. Some teachers are serious about making kids learn and having fun. In my honest opinion, from my experience, I rate this school 6/10.

To be honest the 4 years spent here did nothing, only dropped my grade. Colleges won't except me…read morenow due to the fact that I had a 2.0 GPA. If I would have went to Millikan I would have easily gotten 4.0 GPA.

If I could it would be zero stars James mills should not be a teacher neither araya they both give…read morethe students an attitude and they clearly don't like to teach.

We are not year-round family at Westerly, but we consistently return for their summer camp…read more Our eleven-year-old son had attended all the local summer camps in Long Beach--JCC, 49'er camp, the city's parks and recs--over the past few years, and he ranks Westerly the highest among all camp experiences. The staff is accommodating, the hours are flexible (7:30 am to 5:30 pm), and he has a great time.

What can I say. Our family loves Westerly! Our eldest started at one of Long Beach's blue ribbon…read moreschools, but with the huge classes we decided to take a look at Westerly and we couldn't go back. Since then all our kids have thrived in their Westerly experience. It starts with a sizable campus with a beautiful grass field for sports and activities, newly constructed learning studios and the amazing arts village. What a great place to learn. Then the passionate teachers and staff deliver a whole child program, with a better than 10:1 student/teacher ratio. The Westerly program includes: Curriculum and instruction - Enthusiastic teachers with a well thought out curriculum and small class sizes enabling teachers to adapt the curriculum to the needs of your child. Technology/STEM - Westerly recently hired a full-time Director of Instructional Technology to enhance an already strong technology/STEM program throughout the curriculum. Think coding in class, 3D printing, science and engineering fairs, etc. Visual and performing arts - Incorporated in the curriculum is an annual school-wide play lead by the folks at TKTC. The visual arts program is second to none with the kids being exposed to public arts projects, ceramics in the new ceramics studio, mixed media, painting, photography, etc. I wish I could take the classes myself. Wildcat, the after school program is a blessing. Our kids beg to go to Wildcat to play with their friends, work on yearbook, take film, dance, music, robotics and other after school enrichment activities. Athletics - A legitimate, well-run PE program with enthusiastic instruction and basketball, volleyball, football teams throughout elementary and middle school. Music - Every child takes both general and instrumental music as part of their Westerly experience. Spanish - Kindergarten through 8th grade all the kids get introduced to the Spanish language through a dedicated Spanish instructor. Leadership - This is quite possibly one of the most amazing parts of the curriculum. Continuing on the theme of whole child education the Director of Student Affairs leads an amazing program that goes so beyond student council, creating leadership opportunities for so many children. Programs like student council, district representatives, green team, etc., start in Kindergarten and the kids grow in responsibility as the children grow themselves. Each child also gains leadership responsibilities as a student mentor, where each older student is paired with a younger student as a mentor. Service learning and field studies - As the kids grow in maturity so do the service learning and field studies. Our children have enjoyed trips to Catalina and other local camps, but the highlight of the program is a one week trip in 8th grade where the whole class travels to Nicaragua to conduct a service learning project, practice their spanish, and are exposed to a different culture and way of life that they are used to. Community - Westerly is a place where without question every family places a priority on securing a great, well-rounded education for their children. Being in an environment like this is so fantastic. Independent school is not cheap, but in our minds it's the best gift we can give to our children. Westerly also offers significant financial aid support, so if that is an issue be sure to discuss your situation with the school to see if they can make something work for your family. P.S. This may sound like a paid ad, but it's our true feelings about this place. It's really special.

I've heard good things about this school and have driven by it for several years. In the back of my…read moremind, I've kind of always thought it would be nice if my son could come here in this area. Several years later, my son is now a 6th grader and we finally got a chance to ask questions at the school of choice fair and I was impressed with how a young boy was so enthusiastic and informative about his school. I got to meet the Principal Mr. Chu and decided this was my son's new school! He had friends going to other schools but the area, the program, etc... sold me. Open School day (or whatever it was called) and orientation day, we got to take a tour and get familiar with his classes. He got to make new friends right away and they bonded over Roblox, etc. The staff have been so supportive and kind and helpful! I love this school and look forward to a great 6-8 grade experience with my son. Thank you guys!

Always getting bullied, teachers yelling for no reason, students being... weird…read more Education great, nice principal, some good educating teachers, and fun events

My daughter is in 7th grade and very happy here. I have been so impressed with IVA since my…read moredaughter started last year. The communication from the school and the inclusiveness has made it a great experience for us. Students are respected, their voices are heard and they are made to feel like their opinions matter. The virtues are there to make them feel empowered as students. The weekly advisory meeting they have once a week for all students is great because it helps them understand and know the virtues and how to apply them to their work. Sixth grade is a learning curve and IVA gets that. One thing to know about the school is that since kids are coming from all different schools and school settings it's easier to make friends. There are no clicks in place. This year they also made it phone free. No phones at school. However, they can use them after school. I have read past reviews that said the school is not diverse and not for people of color. This from our experience is not true at all. Maybe in past years this was the case but it is no longer this way. IVA is very racially and socioeconomically diverse. It is a true representation of Long Beach in that regard. If you are a parent who wants to volunteer and see what is going on at the school there are plenty of opportunities, field trip opportunities, dances every year, a chili cook off, and family breakfast/lunches hosted by the school. There is a weekly newsletter, outlining all events coming up. How you can get involved, sports info, field trips etc... They make it very difficult for you to miss something. My daughter loved the dances last year. They are more like a fun party. There is no pressure to have a date or anything like that. They make them very low pressure like come in your PJ's etc... It's just an opportunity to hang out with friends outside of school. The staff and teachers will all know your child's name. I think this matters to my daughter. We live in Belmont Heights and had an opportunity to send her to Rogers as well. It's not quite our home school but it is a lot closer to us than IVA and I wanted her to go there. She would have had friends closer and I wanted that for her. However, after my daughter toured IVA in 5th grade, she made her mind up that she wanted to experience the smaller school and smaller class setting. She loved seeing students laughing in class with the teachers and sitting at little tables. The teachers were young and they didn't look miserable. The principal, Mrs. Bryant who led our tour was very dynamic and genuine. My daughter noticed these things and pushed for us to let her try IVA out. Her experience so far has not disappointed her. She has liked or loved almost all of her teachers. This is so important and this is coming from a student who struggles in school. She has an IEP for a reading disability. School is not easy for her. This is another reason I was hesitant on IVA. I wanted to her to have more options concerning her IEP and a bigger school can provide this. So far, her accommodations at IVA are working for her. She has also made friends with a great group of girls who are from all over Long Beach. In truth this is something I was also dreading but it's ok! She is happy! The parents of her friends are the type of parents who want the best for their kids. They will drive. This is how most of the parents are at this school as well. When volunteer sign ups come out for some event, the list gets filled up fast! Most of the parents at the school care. So far my daughter has joined Track and Cross Country. She also wants to play soccer this year. They do have team sports at IVA but it is on a smaller scale than a larger school. It's great for kids that want to try sports but might be intimidated at a bigger school with a lot of talented athletes. Not to say that there aren't some talented athletes here but it's not the focus of the school. If you're wondering about academics. I have heard wonderful things from parents who have had older siblings that graduated from IVA. One parent in particular shared with me that when her son started at his private High School (Bosco) after IVA, he was placed in honors classes which surprised her because her son was a B/C student at IVA. She felt the education he received at IVA was top notch, taught him how to be a student and actually engage in what he learned. Lastly, I just want to give a shout out to Mrs. Gordon, the dean of students and Mrs. Bryant the principal. These women care about your student. The love and dedication they put into their job is truly impressive.

its not the best school in the world but not the worst. The students are sort of rude to my child…read more If you really want your kid to go there so be it they have really good state teat results though. Try it for ur self