Parras (Nick G.) Middle School

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 28, 2026

My child has had such a great experience so far. Academics has been good and my child has been able to reach out to teachers and get responses. There are honors options in addition to accelerated math. I think middle school athletics is a bummer since my understanding is that it is often geared towards 8th graders with the exception of XC and track which are more inclusive. The band has many options. We had some basic mean girl stuff which did not need school intervention. I was surprised to see that the great school score was lower and saw that it was likely due to improvement per year being low. I have heard there are some attitudes that middle school doesn't matter yet so why bother. So I haven't decided for myself how to interpret whether that score is low specifically due to education, the culture that middle school doesn't matter yet or both.

Posted: May 28, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 20, 2026

I am writing to expose the severe incompetence, lack of communication, and complete failure to protect students at this school, specifically under Principal Shaw.
When we reported that my child was suffering from persistent, subtle bullying, the administration shamelessly demanded "proof" and "witnesses" from the victim. Shifting the blame onto an isolated child who has been systematically ostracized is disgusting. The school's therapy was a complete joke and a waste of time; the therapist never listened to my child.
Their handling of the situation made things worse. We demanded the main bully be moved to a different PE class, but the school managed the fallout terribly. The bully went around bragging to everyone about why he moved, spreading rumors like wildfire. His friends then retaliated, targeting and humiliating my child daily, mocking them as a "snitch." ONLY AFTER the rumors spread and the damage was fully done did Principal Shaw force them to sign a superficial "no-contact, stay-away radius, and no-talking-about-the-incident" agreement. It was way too late. To make matters worse, this agreement automatically expires when the school year changes—as if the bullying will just magically disappear next year.
Furthermore, the staff completely violates student privacy. When calling my child for therapy, the teacher would announce my child's name out loud to the entire class to go to the "Wellness Center," causing immense social embarrassment. We emailed requesting discretion, but the school showed zero consistency—respecting it one day and shouting it out the next.
The school also neglects legally binding accommodations. My child has an official 504 plan for quiet testing, yet teachers enforce it inconsistently based on their whims. Additionally, because the office fails to notify teachers when calling my child out of class, my child has been unfairly marked tardy multiple times.
Lastly, Principal Shaw treats parents with blatant discrimination. I was rudely demanded to move my car near the red line for "safety," yet other parents do the exact same thing every day, and Shaw says absolutely nothing to them. This school fails on every level. Avoid it at all costs.

Posted: May 20, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: May 16, 2026

We are deeply concerned about Ms. Shaw’s ability to effectively lead our school. Many parents in our community feel that her limited experience does not meet the demands of this leadership role. The school has repeatedly fallen short of serving the needs of our families, and this sentiment is widely shared among parents. We respectfully urge RBEF to carefully listen to the community’s concerns and take meaningful action to ensure our children receive the quality of education and support they deserve.

Posted: May 16, 2026

Posted: March 12, 2026

Posted: March 12, 2026

miss Hansel is the only good teacher and she is awesome and the best teacher ever ever ever

Posted: March 12, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

A very bad school. The administrators were very rude when my daughter went there and she had a very hard time because of the culture this school created.

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: January 21, 2026

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

It's a mixed bag here, some teachers are amazing while some are not. The administration (school principal) is horrible and does not know how to run a school and it is difficult to get any response from the school. It's too bad because the school has a lot of potential, it wasn't always like this.

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: August 21, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

My son was placed on a reading development class, but I was not informed until three months later. The school claims they monitor cell phone use in class, but they don't, it varies by teachers. There are some teachers that are nice, but some will retaliate against your kid if you complain. It happened to me, I made a complain and didn't tell my son, months later my son was telling me how the teacher was suddenly rude to him, I connected the dots right away. During teacher-parent conferences teachers don't want to talk with you or barely, for years they kept telling my son was doing fine, but I looked into his school assignments and he could barely write a coherent sentence.

As with any CA public school, quality is declining, grade inflation is rampant, students are learning less and less but they pass regardless. I think most parents don't want to believe, but since a lot of parents pay for enrichment classes maybe they don't care and some are just oblivious. I have seen many parents with bright kids trying to suggest changes to RBUSD, they give up and move to private schools/homeschool or move out . Private schools are not better, but they seem to fare better.

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: February 11, 2024

Posted: January 15, 2019

Posted: January 15, 2019

Posted: January 15, 2019

Students have flexibility in what they do and are disciplined at correct moments.

Posted: January 15, 2019

Posted: January 15, 2019

I have seen some learning differences but not enough to determine this.

Posted: January 15, 2019

There is very good counseling and bullying support methods in this school.

Posted: January 15, 2019

My experience with this school has been a fun and enjoyable time. Homework is light and reasonable. Teachers here are experienced and interactive with students. Facilities are well maintained and have a great design. Activities are fun and a great experience. Overall, I would highly recommend this school.

Posted: November 17, 2018

Too much homework was given for transitioning 6th graders. Homework in every class every day.

Posted: November 17, 2018

Staff are rude and unkind to children. Past leadership had no accountability and did not solve important problems at the school. This taught students disrespect, made them angry. Not helping students to be better people and to succeed creates a disconnect, but you can't help students be better people if you don't know how to be good people. Who is making sure that the adults know how to be good people, and know how to pass that on to students?

Posted: November 17, 2018

Dr. Nygren did not/could not solve problems. He spent more time trying to cover up for staff shortcomings, and not responding to emails in writing so that you had to chase him down with phone calls than really solving problems. Maybe he didn't know how. How did he get his job? Fortunately, he has resigned.

Posted: November 17, 2018

Posted: November 17, 2018

There are bullies on staff and in leadership. There is favoritism and bullying built into systems. There is no awareness about bullying because the bullying occurs among and by staff, and therefore on some level they must think it's an okay behavior. How, then can they effectively do anything meaningful about bullying if they are bullies themselves?

Posted: November 17, 2018

We left this school in the middle of the school year in a previous year. It is my experience that the administration at the school and district level are poor to mediocre, and do not have a growth mindset. Leaders and many staff lack self-reflection, critical thinking, character, and a passion for youth development and education.

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Posted: October 23, 2018

Parras is the best! First, the campus is beautiful and has been tastefully improved over the years. The education students get is top notch with the most innovative strategies! They have advisory period, block schedule, and intervention programs in place. I’m a teacher of 12 years in a neighboring district and am envious of all the happenings at this school. Their scores and list of awards are incredible. Leadership when Dr. Nygren was there was the best—he’s a mastermind and truly leads that school. He’s also so fair and honest—with a upbeat attitude and awesome sense of humor. Back to School Night isn’t the same without him. Teachers and counselors are great too!

Posted: March 7, 2015

This school is amazing and my kids definitely love it. Staff is amazing, learning environment is amazing all I can say is amazing

Posted: December 8, 2014

Please disregard the older, negative reviews. My daughter is in 6th grade and her transition from elementary school has been effortless. The staff and administration go out of their way to be welcoming and supportive. All of her teachers are outstanding, engaged educators. The PE program and music program are rigorous and fun at the same time. Students are encouraged to advocate for themselves, becoming responsible learners and not relying on parents to intervene with the teachers (life skills!). We couldn't ask for anything more in a middle school. Period.

Posted: September 23, 2014

My son got a 600 Star Test! Thank You! I love this School 10 out of 10!

Posted: September 9, 2014

I posted the last post... But anyway I have been reading and I do agree. The principal tries to make the school fun for us but it doesn't work. During our assembly's it's a snore. I mean I like them because they waste learning time for about 20-30 minutes. I am in 7th now but homework is insanely stressful they expect to much from us from all of our reports and homework from other classes they don't understand that we spend 2-3 hours (or more) on doing projects, studying, and homework. The situations you bring to them they don't seem to care. The counselors are very nice but don't do anything about racism, cursing, and very un-participational teachers. It seems that we run the school more than the teachers do. They have little to no interest if we fail or get good grades they just tell us to try harder and if you get to many bad grades you can't do fun activities which is... Especially with the ones with learning disorders the campus doesn't seem to try to help them and they get really bad grades because they won't understand anything. I am switching to Adams, or Da Vinci. I want to say, I hope you make the right choice in choosing a good middle school for your child.

Posted: March 1, 2014

I am an educator at another school district of nearly 20 years, and although I searched around for alternative options before deciding on our neighborhood school, Parras Middle School, I can't tell you how impressed I am with this school. It is everything you could want from a school, in my opinion. Staff, kids, education, extra curricular, parental support, my kids love it. They don't like the homework, but that is the system of schools anywhere you go. The principal and AP, the library, the gym and sports, the counselor, the music teacher, the plays, the parents and kids, the quality of education. This is as good as it gets- I don't volunteer at the school, but I should- it is amazing!

Posted: February 12, 2014

The administration is very poor, they do no listen nor care with any issue. The AP is very naive and doesn't what she is doing. The principal is very money minded, has a short fuse and very anti-social towards the students and parents, I have seen him in action. This school would succeed with a whole new team of administrators.

Posted: January 27, 2014

The school principal will take a student out of school before the student can enroll in another.

Posted: January 4, 2014

Parras was a good school. It's been several years since I've had a child there. The current principal was an assistant when we were there and he's a bright guy. The facility is decent. Some of the teachers are just clueless (I could start a list, but why bother).

Posted: August 18, 2013

Parras Middle School is outstanding. Dr. Nygren is all about the children and learning environment. The school is run efficiently and it is obvious that the staff cares. While there is challenges in every environment, the root issues are considered and addressed rather than putting a band aid on the problem. Kids are academically challenged and there are many opportunities for growth.

Posted: May 22, 2013

I am very happy my granddaughter is able to attend Parras Middle School. The teachers, office staff, and classes are wonderful and perfect for my granddaughter. She is very bright and has always been bored with school, but has been challenged in her advanced classes there. She loves education and sees no advantage for summer vacation as she would rather be in a learning enviornment!! This school has allowed her to work up to her potential. No other school has done this for her, not even private school!! My hat goes off to Parras Middle School and their staff!! She has flourished in academics and ASB. A Loving Grandparent.

Posted: March 19, 2013

This school is terrible! The academic are not very good! The teachers seem to have little or no passion. The administration really doesn't want feedback from parents. Kids are cheating during test. The kids that need a challenge are doing the standard work. The GATE program is a joke. There are so many kids in GATE because the standards are so low. Honor Roll is another joke. What happened to the 4.0 Honors criteria? Where does all the money I spend in Property taxes go? I wish this school had a program to challenge the really bright kids. --concerned parent--

Posted: March 13, 2013

My child has learned a lot while attending Parras. However race is a major factor and it starts as soon as you check in if your African American. The school has NO tutoring programs. Great school for a child to catch up, but be prepared to see bad grades.

Posted: December 2, 2012

I hated Parras! Every kid was racist and said mean words to me. The teachers and pricipal always blame me for everything and are feelingless and terrible. I recently moved to Adams up north in Redondo Beach. There are a lot of programs like WEB (where everybody belongs) which made me feel welcome on my first day the teachers are nice and open to help me and the principal makes me feel welcome because he always gives me a good morning. I hope you make the right choice of where to enroll your child going to middle school. GO ADAMS EAGLES!!!

Posted: February 1, 2012

Bullying, racism and nobody cares!!! Teachers and administration pretend not to see what is going on!

Posted: November 15, 2010

This school is good. the teachers are strict but they really prepare you for high school. The kids are considerate and there is not that much DRUG use.