Rachel Carson Elementary School

Honestly, I’m pretty frustrated with the health situation at Carson lately. The attendance numbers are a huge red flag—last I checked, chronic absenteeism was way over 25%, and you can really feel it in the classrooms. It feels like there is always something going around and the communication from the office about illness outbreaks is basically non-existent. My kid's class is also super crowded, so when one person gets a cough, everyone has it by Friday. It’s tough to feel okay about the 'wellness culture' here when the school is clearly struggling just to get kids in the door and keeping the facility clean doesn't seem like the top priority.

Honestly, keeping it real for the other parents in Gage Park—I’m pretty stressed about the situation at Rachel Carson. The chronic absenteeism here is super high, and it feels like there's always a bug going around because the attendance is so spotty. It’s hard for the kids to stay healthy and focused when the school feels so overcrowded; the student-to-teacher ratio is way too high, so you know the staff is spread too thin to really keep an eye on every kid sneezing or feeling off. I’ve heard they’re trying to work on social-emotional learning and bullying, which is great, but the actual physical environment feels neglected. Between the maintenance issues and how cramped the classrooms are, it feels like a total petri dish half the time. I really wish they would prioritize the building's upkeep and getting more health staff on-site to help manage the workload.