BUSD Northwest Zone

Reviews of Schools in the Northwest Zone:  

6 parent questions ▼
Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Parent Q&A

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  • BUSD NW Zone elementary school experiences?

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    Jan 17, 2023

    Hi all, 

    We have a rising Kindergartener in the NW zone and would love to hear any updated experiences folks have with BAM, Ruth Acty, Rosa Parks, and Sylvia Mendez. If you have a child at one of those schools and are open to chatting/emailing, we'd be so grateful (We had a crazy month, and somehow missed the info nights for 3 of the schools in our zone. Alas!)

    Mostly just curious if folks have a way in which they think any of these schools stand out, positively or negatively. At the BAM info night, we were impressed with the amount of field trips and hands on science curriculum they did in Kinder, and the school-wide community events. 
    Thanks! 
    Jess 

    Jan 17, 2023

    https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/questions/insights-northwest-zon…

    https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/questions/rosa-parks-vs-ruth-act…

    Asked a couple times recently and overall everyone has seemed happy with NW zone placements. Biggest factors seem to be start time and location. FWIW I've got 2 at Rosa Parks and we are very happy. Would also be happy to chat!

    Jan 23, 2023

  • Rosa Parks vs Ruth Acty vs BAM?

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    Dec 7, 2022

    We're just about to start taking a few tours to decide on our top choice for an incoming K student, but we're a bit clueless on how to choose. I would love to hear from any current parents of Rosa Parks, Ruth Acty, or BAM students- what do you love about your school? How did you decide it was the right one? Aside from location and start time, we're not sure what qualities to look for to see if it would be a good fit. Thanks so much!

    Dec 7, 2022

    Check out this other thread here for more insight https://www.berkeleyparentsnetwork.org/questions/insights-northwest-zon…

    The schools in NW zone are all pretty great - most folks i know used location and start time as the guiding light for picking the school :)

    Dec 14, 2022

    We’ve been at BAM for six years now with one kid in fifth and one is second. We have had an amazing experience. The teachers and staff are phenomenal. The parent community is also great, with an active PTA. Our younger kid is in LEARNS (the afterschool program) and loves it. Everyone knows our kids and they feel seen and supported.

    Dec 14, 2022

  • Rosa Parks compared to other NW Zone schools?

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    Dec 5, 2022

    We’re currently considering Berkeley's northwest zone schools, especially Rosa Parks. When we recently toured RP, we loved the village feel and indoor/outdoor environment with all the classrooms in their own buildings, and the kindergarten yard tucked away. I've talked with a few parents that love the school and current principal, which is great, but I'm also curious to hear other perspectives. Most of the discussions on BPN are very outdated (pre-2010) or specific to distance learning in 2020. From searching online, it's clear that RP has historically been the underdog and less desirable school but I'd love to learn more about its recent history — and improvements to turn it around.

    I don't ask this in a gossip-y or negative way; as a parent who's new to the BUSD, I'm genuinely curious to learn more about RP since it's a front-runner for us. 

    Thanks for any insights from current or previous parents or people who are just in-the-know about the district. 

    Dec 5, 2022

    We have two kiddos at RP in Kinder and 1st and we love the school! We were happy last year even with a principal whose communication style left something to be desired, and are really liking the new principal this year. It's my understanding that the school went through a big transformation under a principal who left to go to Longfellow a couple of years ago, and I don't think it's currently viewed as any kind of underdog. We found (anecdotally) that many, many of the folks who attend put it as their first choice over the other schools in the zone - it was our second as we are closer to Ruth Acty, but we decided to stay and didn't even consider transferring this year. Both kids are very happy with their teachers, as are we.

    The PTA does a lot for the school - we just had a free to all carnival that the kids and community really loved. The school is offering after-school enrichment programming starting in January which we are excited about. What other questions do you have about the school? Happy to answer more questions.

    Dec 7, 2022

    We were a Jefferson/Ruth Acty family, but I will say, I don’t think Rosa Parks suffers from being an underdog. We’ve been in the district many years and know many families who were at RP and loved it. The new principal is a former Ruth Acty teacher, and she is quite capable and all around lovely. RP was our front runner too even back in 2008, but we landed at Jefferson, which we ended up loving. The Northwest zone is blessed with very very good schools. You can’t really go wrong with any of them. 

    Dec 7, 2022

    Rosa Parks is not the underdog. It might have been 15 years ago, but it certainly hasn’t been in a long time. The years we sent our kids, it was the most highly desired elementary school in the zone among folks that we knew - a lot of people we know didn’t get in.
     

    We have friends at all of the northwest zone schools and they’re all fine. There are good and bad teachers at all of them and they all exist within the same district constraints. The primary differences between them are location and start times. And facilities, but I have not met a kid who cares about the facilities - that’s more of an issue for the teachers, staff and parents.

    We have had 2 kids at Rosa Parks. One went K-5 and loved it - it was a fabulous fit. The other did not do well at all and left that school. I don’t blame the school for the issues with the child that we had to remove - that child has some learning differences and the whole district is equally painful to deal with for this. Good teachers did compensate, but there is no guarantee of a good teacher, and distance learning made the situation with that child untenable.

    Rank the schools based on what you like - you can’t really go wrong. But don’t get your hopes up. Many families that we know did not end up at their first (or even second) choice school and it mostly worked out fine. Unless there was an issue with the kid. But I don’t think a different school would’ve helped in those situations.

    Dec 7, 2022

    My daughter attended Thousand Oaks, in the N school zone, and we were pretty happy with it. I never viewed RP as an underdog- it has a reputation as a great school on my block (the way it worked, half my block went to TO, the others were bused to RP).

    Dec 11, 2022

    I appreciate everyone's responses that paint a more current picture of RP! It's in line with what I've gathered from the tour, info fair, and a few conversations.

    Thanks again!

    Dec 14, 2022

  • Choosing an elementary school in BUSD NW Zone

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    Jan 26, 2022

    Hi, we live in West Berkeley and are very excited to be applying for our older son to start kindergarten in fall 2022. We have attended all the zoom nights for the schools in our zone and they all seem lovely. I definitely appreciate that they use the same curriculum, which seems to be really solid and well thought-out. And, I know there is a lottery aspect to all this. But, since we still have to come up with some ranking, we have a few remaining questions that I would love to hear from current BUSD elementary parents on. Is Rosa Parks still an environmental science magnet? It sounds like such a neat program as described on the website, but I can't really tell if it exists or in what form. For families who don't get into LEARNS/BEARS, are there other before-school options? I know there are after-care options through the City and some other orgs, but it doesn't seem like these have a before-care component. And, are there differences between the schools in the NW zone in terms of opportunities for art or music as kids, especially as get older? Feel free to message me directly. Thanks! 

    Jan 26, 2022

    No responses received.

  • Question on Thousand Oaks elementary and BUSD waitlist

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    Mar 18, 2021

    Hello, We just found out yesterday that we got into our fourth choice school of Thousand Oaks Elementary for my son for Kindergarten next year. We were very surprised since we got all of our forms in early. We are concerned about the school and reading recent BPN reviews suggest that some of our concerns may be valid. I would appreciate some additional feedback. I know test scores and school rankings are not everything, but it is concerning that the school has poor performance compared to other schools in the district, including having been on an improvement plan recently. My son is a somewhat reluctant learner in conventional settings - he hates worksheets and is easily discouraged. He really thrives if he can feel connected to the teacher. How are the teachers at engaging kids like that? Also, my son tends to be quite sensitive, and is easily derailed by behavior issues and noise in the classroom. He had an unfortunate experience in preschool with kids being aggressive/bullying, and it took a long time for him to recover from that. We don't want a repeat experience if we can avoid it! Are there lots of behavior issues at the school and how are teachers at managing bullying or other behavior problems? Are classrooms loud and chaotic or calm and organized? Another parent in a previous post said that kids are sent out of the classroom for behavior problems. When school was in person, was that still happening? Has the new principal changed the behavior management policies at all? Also, how is the after school program for behavior problems? I used to work in schools and the after school program was often where the worst behavior issues played out. 

    Also, has anyone had success in getting into a different school through the waitlist process? We were really hoping for Rosa Parks since it is 5 blocks from our house, but would be open to other schools as well. Is it better to request to be on the waitlist for multiple schools? Is it better to request schools in your zone, or does that not matter for the waitlist? 

    Thank you!

    Mar 18, 2021

    I am in the same type of situation.  We were given Rosa Parks, our 4th choice, and really wanted Thousand Oaks.  Admissions said the only option is a waitlist, but I wonder if there is anyway to switch?

    Mar 23, 2021

    My experience is only anecdotal but I've known several families who were on the waitlist and eventually got into the school they wanted, but not right away. It's usually several months into the school year, which is pretty disruptive for your child, especially if they've already settled in. I've never heard of an instance where a student gets off the waitlist right when school starts. It usually takes time to shake out the numbers, and even then it isn't a guarantee. I don't know much about TO since my kids went to Jefferson (Ruth Acty), but I really think all of the elementary schools are good. That's the beauty of the lottery. They're pretty equal. Of course COVID could change all of this, since I believe BUSD has seen a decline in numbers, so you may get off the waitlist right away. But as always with BUSD, it's a crapshoot. 

    Mar 24, 2021

  • Feedback on schools in NW Berkeley zone

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    Oct 5, 2016

    Our daughter will be in kindergarten next year. We would love to hear feedback about the schools in the NW Berkeley zone. I looked in the archives and woukd love updated feedback from parents! 

    Oct 5, 2016

    I am a volunteer tutor in literacy at Jefferson school on Rose and Sacramento. Jefferson is an excellent school. Good principal, excellent teachers, high morale, many supportive parents, good learning environment. Highly recommended. 

    Oct 21, 2016

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Seeking feedback on Northwest Zone schools

Oct 2010

As a first timer in the BUSD kindergarten application/lottery process I wanted to put this out there to the BPN community - the Kindergarten application process is getting close and I'm wondering if anyone in the NW school zone (Rosa Parks, Jefferson, Thousand Oaks, Berkeley Arts Magnet) wants to sound off about their school (positive and negative feedback welcome). They all seem pretty good to excellent. What helped you decide, put you over the top on how to rank the schools. I know test scores don't tell the full story, so what are some of the intangibles I might consider? NW resident


Go visit them! BUSD has visitation dates for each elementary school and you should make use of them. Get a feel for the school. Does it seem like a place that your kid(s) would be happy, safe, engaged and learning?

Be sure to visit classes at all grade levels, not just K, because your kid is only in K for one year. You want to get a read on the school as a whole. Look at what is posted on the walls in classrooms and hallways. Check out the library and other facilities available to kids -- music, art, garden, computers? Try to stay during recess to see how adults interact with kids during unstructured time.

When my oldest was entering K, I visited a number of schools and got very different impressions from each of them. They all had their strengths, but I picked based on what was important to me and what I wanted for my kids. --Happy with my choice


I have a 2nd grader & Kinder at Thousand Oaks (TO). All the schools in our zone our generally really good. (Don't know much about BAM. Not in NW zone when we were looking at schools.) Because of the quality of BUSD schools, your 1, 2, 3 choices really come down to what works for your family & depends simply on your priorities/point of view. Select a school based on what you feel is good for your kids. We listed TO as our first choice mainly because of the outdoor space, big grassy field for kids to run around. We liked the campus/classrooms and that it was a big school as far as BUSD goes (which I understand for some whould be a con.) Also it was simply in a good location for us. Now 3 yrs at TO, we continue to be thrilled with our school. We've had incredibly caring, top-notch teachers. Can't say enough good things about our entire teaching staff. Our test schools continue to improve every year, but test scores as you say are not all that. We have involved parents that help in the classrooms and an active PTA (I'm a member) that organize many fun community building events as well as provide/fund extra-curricular activities/programs for our kids. Our PTA also has a solid fundraising committee. Finally, as someone who didn't consider diversity as a factor in selecting a school, I know really understand, appreciate & greatly value the diversity of our families and think TO is a great all- around school. For us a negative might be the lack of after- school activities for non after-school care kids. But I'm not really sure that's a negative for us, because I'm not into filling my kids free time up with classes/activities However, I suppose it might be nice to have some on campus after school choices should my kids seem interested in say, drama, chess or whatever. Good luck and may you get in to your 1st choice school & if you don't, know that all the NW Zone schools are great in their own ways. Extremely Proud TO Parent


Yes, I am totally in favor of throwing non-academic factors into the decision process. I'm also in favor of not stressing out too much over it, since ultimately you get what BUSD gives you! But even without the lottery it would be tricky because so much of what you would need to make a theoretically perfect decision (a crystal ball, basically) isn't possible.

One thing to throw into the decision might be the bus possibility. We live far enough away from our assigned school (Rosa Parks ) that our daughter gets to ride the bus. It's awesome! The driver (Darryl) is like having another fabulous teacher on our team. We have met the other families on the route, and for playdates we can just tell the school to let her off at the friend's spot (they won't let her off the bus unless there's a parent waiting there to receive her, it's very well-run). And it's like an hour of free childcare every day! I enjoy waiting together at the stop in the morning; like every family, we have to rush around like crazy getting out the door, but then we have a few peaceful minutes together before we go off for our separate days. The downside to attending a more-distant school is that it's less convenient to drop in for brief volunteer things since it's a 10 minute bike ride there and a 20 minute uphill ride back.

Another thing to consider is the schedules; the three schools have different start and finish times, and one of them might work better for you than another.

Unsubstantiated opinion to follow, take it with a grain of salt -- Something extremely subjective and unverifiable that I just recently realized is that the mix of parents at Rosa Parks is one that I personally really enjoy, and I think it may be related to having our kid in the officially-less-desireable school in our zone (Jefferson is currently ''the good school'', BTW). You know the people who say, ''We put in an application for BUSD, but if my kid gets assigned to Rosa Parks/unless my kid gets assigned to Jefferson, we're going private''? They're not here! I've been really heartened by how much engagement and passion and creativity there is in the parent community at our school (as, I believe, there is at all the BUSD elementaries, but at Rosa Parks we get to be the striving underdogs of our zone. Not everyone's cup of tea, I know!) can't go wrong in the NW Zone!