Isaac L. Sowers Middle School

"there are few teachers who truly enjoy their job, the others don't seem to care. don't send your child here, there are kids who vape in the bathroom, some students here will sexually harass others. like i said before, do NOT send your kids here. a large percentage of children here are stuck up and will bully your child."

"Son went there for one year and we are pulling him out. A Teacher told him she didn't have time for him after a student stole his homework. The school took 4 weeks to call him in to ask about the issue after my wife sent 3 emails requesting information. The teacher would only give him 1/2 credit on the work because it was late. He talks about the other students disrupting the class and the teachers not doing anything to control the class, which then he causes him to have problems with the teachers lesson plan. The teachers are not responding to our concerns. If he does poor on a test they don't care. have heard other parents in the neighborhood with similar issues."

"At the age of thirteen, I enrolled in my junior high school. I entered a portable building designated for the special needs program, inconveniently placed incredibly far from the actual building of the school. The room was full of children, each one with a different disorder. The clinically depressed sat next to the bipolar, and the low autistic spectrum sat next to the high autistic spectrum. Our ‘Guidance Specialist’ was a two faced man. For the parent, he was everything you wanted in a teacher, but for students, he was incredibly rude. Every Time we did something that didn't exactly fit in with the normal school population, he would berate you untill you would cry. The worse part was afterwards, he still put up the face that he was your buddy. Everyone in the class disliked him. The regular teachers were no better. Not popular with the normal student, they were worse with the special needs kids. There are a minority of teachers that are great. Many are burn-out cases who have been brainwashed by their union or clearly just hate their job. Kids pick up on this, fast. I had been attending an art course for my second year, because it was my new year’s resolution, and I was really in love with drawing at the time. But my Art Teacher killed that love. She ignored my requests for a review and gave no time for individual help. She would be teaching class and I would get lost and raise my hand and she wouldn't answer me. One time I spent the whole period with my hand raised. Than one day, the teacher handed back the test scores on test. As if art can be graded like that. I got a D. I asked her why I got such a low grade, and instead of encouraging me to get better and foster my love for arty, she curtly said that my art was garbage. I walked back to my desk, but I accidently bumped her arm on the way back. Than she threw a freaking hissy fit in the class. She ordered me to go the principle and said I detention. I had never gotten detention before. I burst down crying and sobbing on a nearby chair, while the teacher refused to even look at me. A fellow student had the goodness in him to walk me over to the main office, because I just couldn't move. Eventually, the vice principle and the principal asked me to come into their office. I told them the story, and they believed me. They said they would get an apology from the teacher and that they would call my mother. My mom cam to the main office just in time to hear that the art teacher wouldn't apologize. Than there was my english teacher. My brothers hated her too, the ones that had already graduated. She actually pulled the world’s smallest violin on me. If anyone ever does that to me again, I will slap in the face while they are doing it. Yes, students here build character by developing thick skin dealing with bullies and a system that is designed to protect the bullies. None of them had ever really been punished. Except for the worst, who had to be expelled. This school ruined my experience as a pre adolescent. Before this, I used to think school was a magical place. But i learned that any child with special needs like myself should stay away from this school."

"I love this school. I went here last year, and the teachers are so nice (especially Ms. Rosener; even though everybody else hates her). I now go to Edison High School, and It's pretty nice for my freshman year, but I really recommend this school, because of the wonderful music program. I tried out for The Music Man, Alice in Wonderland, and The Sound Of Music. I also play the trombone, and have been playing it since 5th grade, and I'm now in the marching band (It's harder than you think). When I was in 7th grade I played the violin. The new music teacher Mrs. Ivey, is nice, and very involved. If you join the choir you'll enjoy it as well, I tried out in 6th grade, but I was shy and started to cry so I didn't make it, but they take mostly everyone. When you go to High School you finally realize how influential Middle School can be. And for my final goodbyes, I hope to see your kindly faces if you join Marching Band (It really is a good school; I'm taking Honors English and will most likely take MUN/World Geo. later in spring)."

"Unable to talk to the principal or teacher in a face to face meeting. They have every excuse not to meet with you and don't seem to want to help your child."