St. Patrick School

I would like to start off saying that if this letter offends anyone I am truly sorry however I think parents should be aware of what has happened at this school the last couple of years. I have had friends tell me some horrible stories and since have removed their kids from this school. I on the other hand took in the advice but still made the decision to place my children at this school. The school is ran by a new principal who has bare minimum teaching credentials. This is a private school which is ran by the Diocese and it is funded by Daughters Of Charity. So the principal having minimal credentials is not an issue because Catholic/​Private schools are protected and are managed differently then public schools. The current principal is a straight bully. She has tried to bully parents as well as the children who attend school there. I don’t agree with anyone putting hands on my child in any type of disciplinary action. No you can not take your finger and raise a child’s head so they can look at you in your eyes when your so close to their face they can smell your breath. She invades spaces of children and teachers. She yells at the children constantly calling it REFLECTION. Strict is not the word for it. She is a female version of Castro the well known dictator. She buckles under pressure and the bullying begins. She can’t have a decent conversation with parents let alone a children. She is threatening and as I would say it «Off with her head» meaning if she doesn’t like you or your child will no longer be attending the school. Either from her bullying the parent and forcing them to remove their children or she will find a way to expel your child. The diocese has been made aware by 17 parents of the complaints they have with her. And yet nothing was done. A letter was mailed out stating that she will continue to be the principal for St Patrick’s. Her rude impatient bully demeanor with the teachers is outrageous. When do you treat adults like they are children because they don’t teach in a bullying fashion. There is no fun that is allowed at this school. My children were scared to laugh or smile because she would ask my daughter what’s funny get that smirk off your face. She is a miserable woman «OF GOD». The last two years fund raising dues have gone up. Kids are expected to bring in a certain amount of money or else she belittles them and their families. The school is 100% funded by Daughter Of Charity so why is she pushing the fund raising and donating so hard! It’s called a donation not a bare minimum due. There should be no reason for a family to be disrespected because they can’t afford to donate or raise enough money to fit Ms. Islas standards. There is no moral and the kids after 6^th grade are failing. There has never been a full 7^th or 8^th grade class since she’s been principal. There were 14 children in the 8^th grade last year and maybe 12 in the 7^th grade. There’s a reason for that. Because Olga teaches in those classes and the kids are failing maybe due to her Bare Minimal Credentials. I would never suggest this school to anyone as long as Olga Islas is the principal there. The diocese has a paper trail on this woman and refuse to follow through. Did I mention the fact that we have a principal that is teaching children on a daily basis and has had to attend ANGER MANAGEMENT courses due to putting her hand on a 7^th grader yanking on her skirt because she felt it was too short. Sometimes we have to sit back and look at the bigger picture. It’s not always about bragging about kids going to private school or believing the hype on how private schools offer structure and teach our children to live godly lives. I would never allow my child to be treated the way they were the last two years. They now attend a charter school and they love it. They are happy and willing to learn more. Bullying is not OK! Disrespect is not OK! And if she is a woman of God then she needs to be disciplined and they need to allow someone else to treat our children with the dignity they deserve.
Sincerely,
Concerned Parent #18

Run by sisters of Charity. Strong academic, moral and spiritual values. My kids have been attending this School since k. There is a new Principal. Some people don’t appreciate the fact that she likes discipline. I do. Thank God this school exists.

My mom took me out of this ghetto like school. There was no spirit of Catholicism about it. Students cussed like crazy reflecting gang like attitudes. It was disappointing to have teachers who kept to themselves instead of reaching out to their students. A Catholic school should teach their students to have respect & admiration for the Faith. These students displayed a strong dislike towards prayer and showed disrespectful behavior in church for school masses.

Please do not send your children to St. Patrick’s in San Jose. I have never been so disappointed with a school in my life. My children were verbally abused and treated with complete disrespect. A year ago they replaced the Principal, she is horrible. She is mean spirited and shouldn’t be near children at all. The parents have tried to contact the Diocese and report her, but they refuse to replace her. She grabs children by their clothes, pulls down on their skirts, screams at them. She is a horrible teacher and principal. Please if you love your children do not send them to St Patrick’s. We have been at this school for years and am so sorry to see it go down hill so fast. There is a reason why there are opennings at St Pat. It is no longer run by sisters as previously reported. Please look at the dates of the excellent ratings.

this school is in a not-​great neighborhood in downtown SJ. my friends who went here called it st. raunchy. most of the students are minorities, especially Vietnamese and Mexican, many are members of the attached church. Compared to the local schools, which have lots of english learners, this is definitely a step up, yet it is still sub-​par to the majority of catholic schools in the area. they do have a lawn, which is a big plus, but its pretty tiny and located along busy santa clara street.
as stephen mentioned, the class sizes are small. If you are trying to get your kids transferred into a catholic school, for example for middle school, this is a good bet, since many of the other schools have a waiting list.
Loaves and Fishes, a charity soup kitchen, operates out of the school, serving meals several evenings a week. this is a great operation, but maybe a tad dubious, because it means that there are a lot of homeless people hanging around, waiting to get dinner.

St Patrick School is one of the few Catholic schools still run by sisters. The Daughters of Charity foundation.
The school opened in 1925 and is located just a few blocks from the new city hall. The teacher to student ratio is among the best of all the Catholic schools we looked at, and there seems to be a good diversity of Catholics and non-​catholic students.
Tuition runs $ 4,800 to $ 5,400 per year, but financial aid is available to those that qualify (nice thing about Catholic schools).