Community Roots Academy Charter School

Excellent school & teachers.
We feel fortunate that our kids are able to attend… highly recommend!

We are new to this school and my children already consider it their home away from home. My 4^th grader says the school fells like a warm, soft blanket or summer on a perfect day. The teachers are nurturing and involved. My kids have learned more in 3 weeks than they learned all last year at their prior school. They offer Spanish, music, art, PE along with all the required courses and then some! My kids are excited to learn again (including math) and feel comfortable in their own skin. This school has been a gift to our family. Did I mention the kids and parents are smiling on campus? Not to mention, the teachers and principal are too!

We have been at CRA for 2 years and have been very pleased with the school, teachers and overall Project Based Learning program CRA offers. I strongly recommend this school and feel fortunate we were able to get our daughter enrolled.

CRA’s project-​based learning education is the perfect fit for our family. We were living overseas due to work assignments and were suddenly relocated to Orange County. We knew zero about the public school system here and after after visiting public, private and charter schools, we stumbled across Community Roots Academy. Our children started in 2^nd, 4^th and 6^th grade half-​way through the school year but thanks to the hard work and caring attention of the teachers and staff, they could not have had an easier transition.
As a multi-​cultural and well-​travelled family, we really appreciate the diversity of ethnicities, nationalities, faiths and socio-​economic backgrounds at CRA. We like this mix of people and ideas and think it’s really good for our kids. The academics are solid and the kids are learning real-​world skills, not just how to pass tests. There is mastery of learning, not just mastery of knowledge. The school is only a few years old but has grown exponentially — clearly it is doing something (many things!) right.
We had to research what a public charter school was before enrolling our kids — thankfully the information is freely available on the internet. Other posters who feel CRA should build their own campus or find money for a new location are confusing CRA with a private school and do not understand how a public charter school operates. Their claims that CRA is intentionally targeting, taking over a smaller school or deliberately displacing other students are also false. CRA answers to the Capistrano Unified School District. The CUSD is legally required to find a permanent location for CRA and has researched and short-​listed low-​enrollment schools for that purpose.

We are so happy to have found CRA! We came from our neighborhood public school also in CUSD where we made many wonderful friends. The program cuts, growing class sizes, hours of nightly homework and increasing demands on teachers became too much. My oldest son was so unhappy. I knew that there had to be another choice.
My boys started CRA in 5^th & 1^st grades & it’s the best decision we’ve ever made. They have both blossomed! They enjoy school! Smaller class sizes, enrichment programs including drama, music, Spanish & PE beginning from kindergarten. Most importantly though I feel the administrators are truly passionate about education. They care about children, listen when parents have concerns & make improvements where they can.

We were ready to pack our bags and leave Laguna Niguel until our daughter got into CRA. It has been an amazing education experience with dedicated teachers, diversified learning, and multiculturalism. There are children from all ethnic, religious, and socio-​economic backgrounds and it is celebrated! Students benefit from art, drama, music, PE, and Spanish in grades K-​8. This is in addition to the standard subjects. Lots of parent involvement here. Project-​based learning, public speaking skills, and more. Full day Kindergarten, too!
Pay no heed to the comments from disgruntled Hidden Hills and Crown Valley parents who have commented here. They are angry that their schools will potentially be closed down. CRA has no say in the matter. It is the district that makes these decisions, not the charter school.

Absolutely love this school! My son started kindergarten this year and his teachers were absolutely amazing. My son has an IEP and I was concerned as to how the services were going to be dealt with and I couldn’t be happier. Surpassed my expectations giving him all the support necessary to help him succeed, build confidence and be ready for 1^st Grade.

CRA is a great school for your kids, it’s almost like a private school without paying thousands of dollars and they don’t treat it like a business.

This school is soooo special and we are truly lucky to have gotten in to kindergarten with my daughter. She is now in second grade and I would never think of taking her elsewhere. We have even postponed moving out of the area so we can stay at this school. Every school can have issues as far as logistical problems, but what makes CRA different is the level of care that the teachers and administration has for the students. They really do believe in creating a «community» environment where the school, parents, and outside community all play a part in the students’ educational experience. Academically, I cannot say enough about how amazing project-​based learning is!

100% pleased with the school, teachers and administration. These folks genuinely care about the school and students. We feel very fortunate to have gotten in this school. My kindergartener loves school and is enjoying learning. She looks forward to attending and comes home everyday with exciting news. At the beginning of the year, my biggest concern was the lengthy pickup routine but it’s no longer an issue.

Very happy children to say the least! Not too much homework, ZERO tolerance for bullying, great teachers, yoga, chess, soccer, cooking, student government, small classes, and best of all – the middle school is an actual positive experience, not a miserable one like in most other schools with the bullying and teasing. A+