Homer A. Plessy Community School

Posted: February 29, 2024

it is a great school for someone whos child is interested in the arts they have art, marching band, orchestra, theater, and dance they also have a well-rounded curriculum and great teachers 10/10 would recommend

Posted: February 29, 2024

Posted: February 29, 2024

Posted: February 29, 2024

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Posted: February 29, 2024

Posted: February 29, 2024

Posted: February 29, 2024

Posted: February 2, 2024

this school has come along way. my child has attended this school since kindergarten. my child had one really bad teacher in the covid years. when i asked for test scores or quiz scores or any material that would have been the basis for my child's grade nothing was provided.
this was a math class , and my child truly excells in the subject. so the grade just didn't seem to match his mastery of the subject. that teacher is now gone. that is my only negative experience in 6 years. My child has had many exceptional teachers. the school has gotten noticeably better every year. the school is building a great community and i am happy to be a part of it. the music program is top tier. it's really impressive.

Posted: February 2, 2024

Posted: February 2, 2024

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Posted: February 2, 2024

Posted: October 23, 2023

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Posted: October 23, 2023

I love this school and the teachers and staff are very friendly! My niece attends this school after having a bad experience at another school and being transferred mid school year and she’s having a much better time, making lots of friends and is even more ahead in academics then she was before.

They do less pencil paper work and focus a lot of social and project based learning which I believe to be way more beneficial because kids get bored of the pencil paper stuff.

I’d highly recommend this school not only for its friendly nature but for location and how nice the school is!

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: February 18, 2019

Plessy School is the only school located in the French Quarter. We welcome interested families to contact the school for a tour!

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: February 18, 2019

Posted: June 25, 2018

Posted: June 25, 2018

Posted: June 25, 2018

Posted: June 25, 2018

Posted: June 25, 2018

Anyone looking into this school should notice the dates of reviews. I used to love the school (as per older reviews) when my daughter started there, and I am probably now going to take her out. In the last year, parents were lied to, MANY teachers that we loved have been fired by the new head of school, the "nationwide search" yielded a lawyer as head of school? And a lawyer as board president? Really??? The head of school is completely incompetent, teachers are scared for their jobs, everything is about to become about testing, the art at the professed art school has dwindled, cliques abound in administration. It's disgusting and makes me want to cry. I know test scores need to improve, but my gifted kid is probably not going to help out with that. Looking for a new school.

Posted: June 25, 2018

Posted: May 31, 2018

My experience at Plessy was chaotic and stressful. The mission of the school is great and many of the teachers are fantastic, but the leadership is very weak. With a better Head of School and administration, I think Plessy could thrive and survive, but unfortunately I don't think that is going to happen.

Posted: May 31, 2018

Administration and Head of School provide zero social emotional curriculum or restorative behavior practices. There is no documentation for behavior, so many parents don't even know when there are issues at school. Students often engage in violent, disruptive behavior and receive no consequence. When teachers try to give logical consequences, they are undermined by the administration. The social worker is young and inexperienced and makes inappropriate comments about students and their private lives.

Posted: May 31, 2018

Students are not evaluated and go without the services that they need. Director of Student Services is not certified in SPED and is unable to do the job effectively.

Posted: May 31, 2018

The school is too chaotic to deal with bullying. When teachers reach out for support, they are often not given any.

Posted: May 27, 2018

Posted: May 27, 2018

Posted: May 27, 2018

There is no character education but the marketing materials assure you that there are. Leadership isn't well-versed in character education or SEL (which makes sense because the School Leader has never been a teacher). There are no discipline procedures. It is not uncommon to hear about physical fights and bullying that receive no consequence. They don't implement any restorative justice practices but they also don't suspend students, so there's just no consequence.

Posted: May 27, 2018

I will say leadership is very good at PR and shameless self-promotion, but that's about it. Leadership spout out-right blatant lies to parents and and stakeholders, and the "School Leader" isn't an even an educator but a lawyer. Leadership runs the school as a business, and children are it's commodities. Children are spoken about by the amount of dollars they bring to the school, and white parents with community ties get much different treatment due to their potential funding power.

Posted: May 27, 2018

If your child has special needs or receives any accommodations, please do your research and try to find another school!!! This school does not provide services that they agree to on paper.

Posted: May 27, 2018

The school claims to be zero-tolerance on hitting but that isn't the case. If you are a parent, be at the school on a daily basis if your child experiences any bullying. You have to be a 'squeaky wheel' in order to get them to do anything. They try to sweep bullying, fighting, etc under the rug and will only do something about it when parents continually say something. If your child attends this school, make sure you are around and vocal, otherwise they will easily fall through the cracks.

Posted: May 27, 2018

I would not recommend this school to anyone, especially parents of students with special needs. The school is chaotic, disorganized, and is more focused on how to ensure leadership can keep or increase their salaries rather than how to do what's best for kids.

Posted: May 26, 2018

Posted: May 26, 2018

This school is great at PR; they do a wonderful job making themselves look good. Anyone that spends more than 15 minutes in the hallways on any given day, however, will immediately see that this train has gone off the rails. The current Head of School has no experience in education besides being a former Operations Manager, and that in itself is a complete joke. Only in this broken charter school system could someone so unqualified run a school. I could never recommend this school to anyone in good conscience.

Posted: May 26, 2018

Posted: May 26, 2018

Posted: May 26, 2018

Behavior at this school is outrageous - there is no system to build school or classroom culture, and students have had extremely inequitable consequences for behavior. Students are not truly safe at this school.

Posted: May 26, 2018

A Head of School should have extensive experience as an educator. The Head of School at Plessy has NONE and has never taught a day in her life. This is unacceptable for ANY SCHOOL.

Posted: May 26, 2018

Students are not getting the SPED services that they need and are legally supposed to receive.

Posted: March 24, 2017

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Posted: October 6, 2016

Awesome teachers! My son has ADHD and Dyslexia and they went the extra mile to make sure my son got the accommodations he needs He is thriving and is happy to go to school everyday!

Posted: January 4, 2015

First let me start off by saying I am giving this school 4 stars because there is no bus that will come get them from the westbank and that really isn't helpful at all. Other than that I love the school, coming from another state the curriculum isn't challenging but my kids love it as far as it being a new Orleans school. The violin program A plus....the leadership program A plus....I think the grading system is off but most new schools have to get into the breast of things. I wish they had more help as far as children with learning disabilities I think mixing those children in a classroom of regular studies is a lot on a teacher, but this is new Orleans. I also would like to see the teachers provided with the necessary tools they need as well. ive enjoyed volunteering and popping up at the school unannounced. The plays have been very entertaining as well, although I do think the parent reminder calls are done really late.

Posted: December 20, 2014

This is a great school! There is passion from the principal, teachers, staff, and parents. It is a new school and there is work to do, but it is well on it's way. It's too bad the other reviewer didn't stick with it to see the changes that only a few months can make. My kids play their violins and are very excited about learning. The arts are ALL OVER the place. In the third grade, while studying Egypt, they mummified a fish, made instruments from Egypt, and did a play. THAT is arts integration. Many of their work is project based, so you may not see as much homework, but I know they are learning. If you want a school with a community and want to be a part of making one of the best schools in NOLA, come check it out.

Posted: December 9, 2014

I am not sure what the negative review above is about. My daughter has been at Plessy for a year and half and we love it! My daughter is in the violin program and doing well. There is an arts integration specialist that works with the teachers on cirriculum. I have never seen students roaming the halls. The communication from the principal and teachers is excellent! If you are thinking about sending a child to our school, come and see how great it is for yourself.

Posted: May 8, 2014

Plessy is better at PR than running a school. The school is dysfunctional & chaotic. Teachers are nice and probably would be great in a functioning school with support, but good luck figuring out what kids are learning in this mess. All you have to do is observe the classes, hallways, office and any student work (good luck) to see what a mess it is. They have no curriculum and no one can explain what the Reggio-model is that they say they use. They have no arts program. They have few learning materials and teachers are on their own in classrooms. They have no options for a location next year and no secure funding source. They have a skeletal staff- no AP, art, PE, library, etc. Students roam the halls unmonitored. There is no discipline. The violin program they promote is also pure PR. Ask a student to play their violin. There is extremely limited parent participation as evident on their facebook page constant calls for volunteers. While many parents have tried to get involved, most leave in disgust. Many families have left mid-year. While there is a chance this school can pull it together eventually, I would caution any parent not to subject your child to this joke of a school.

Posted: April 10, 2014

At Plessy, kids achieve the ability to really develop their minds because learning is always so fun! My daughter has already learned so much about math and language in Pre-K and the music and art she is able to use helps her express that understanding in new ways and gain higher self esteem. There are also incredibly cool events where kids can do group activities and parents can eat together, help each other out, and share experiences. I am so impressed by the level of care every single teacher puts into Plessy. They know all the kids by name and love them for their unique personalities while at the same time helping them learn positive decision-making for this world =). I love all of the parents /and/ the teachers /and/ the principle of this school. It is an absolute gift to have this school in New Orleans.

Posted: December 4, 2013

I LOVE this school. My son is a second grader. It is truly a community school. We see schoolmates and teachers at the park, the local pizzaria, etc... Parents are very involved and care. Teachers are innovative and creative. We have a new principal, Joan Reilly who is wonderful and full of great ideas to make Homer Plessy the next "big thing" which I have no doubt it will be.

Posted: December 3, 2013

Homer Plessy is an awesome school with the highest parent involvement that I know. My second grader wants to go to school everyday because he enjoys his school. His environment is richly diverse and he is learning through experience. The staff is amazing and they love the children!

Posted: September 22, 2013

My Kindergartener daughter loves Plessy School. Her class is diverse which is so rare in New Orleans. There's a good feeling every day at morning meeting. The parents are really involved and the teachers are accessible and really engaged.

Posted: September 3, 2013

We love the Plessy school. We love that we can ride our bikes there. We love the Reggio-inspired curriculum that encourages creative problem solving and divergent thinking skills. We love that our kids are so excited about school and learning and that they see it as fun. We love how involved parents are and how they are seen as an asset for the school. We love the incredible diversity of the school. We love how the arts are integrated into the school in so many ways. We love that the staff has so much experience. I'm also encouraged that there are parents who had very positive experiences at excellent schools like Lusher & Audubon yet choose to enroll their kids at Plessy. We love how the after-care staff is different from the school staff so as not to burnout teachers. Bottom line, we love the Plessy school, families, teachers and staff and thankful that this option is so close for families in the downtown neighborhoods of St. Roch, St. Claude, Marigny, Bywater, 7th Ward, L9 & more, though there are great families from all over the city sending their kids to Plessy.