Horace Greeley Elementary School

I honestly feel like Horace Greeley is struggling with the basics right now. The chronic absenteeism rate is over 20%, and you can really see it in the classrooms; it feels like there’s always a stomach bug or something going around and the school isn't doing much to get ahead of it. Communication from the office about illness outbreaks is pretty spotty, so I usually just hear about what's going around through the parent group chat instead of the nurse. It feels like they're short-staffed or just overwhelmed. The building is older, and I really worry about the ventilation during the winter months when everything is sealed up tight. It's just not where it needs to be for a neighborhood school.

Honestly, Horace Greeley is pretty solid when it comes to keeping the kiddos healthy. My 2nd grader’s classroom always smells like lemon wipes when I drop him off, and I’ve seen the janitorial staff really going at it in the hallways. They are super strict about the '24-hour fever-free' rule, which can be a literal pain for childcare but I appreciate not having a flu outbreak every other week. The nurse is a sweetheart and actually calls you personally if there's a scraped knee or a sniffle, which feels very neighborhood-school. My only gripe is the playground gets a bit muddy and messy after it rains in Lake View, so they end up stuck inside for recess more than I'd like, but overall the health vibes are good.