International Charter School of Atlanta in Roswell

Category	Rating	Details
Test Scores	9/10	The Test Score Rating examines how students at this school performed on standardized tests compared with other schools in the state. The Test Rating was created using 2025 Georgia Milestones End-of-Course (EOC) Assessment data from Georgia Governor's Office of Student Achievement, and using 2025 Georgia Milestones End-of-Grade (EOG) Assessment data from Georgia Governor's Office of Student Achievement.
Student Growth	5/10	The Student Progress Rating measures whether students at this school are making academic progress over time based on student growth data provided by the Department of Education. Specifically, this rating looks at how much progress individual students have made on state assessments during the past year or more, how this performance aligns with expected progress based on a student growth model established by the state Department of Education, and how this school's growth data compares to other schools in the state. The Growth Rating was created using 2025 Student growth data from Georgia Governor's Office of Student Achievement.

Posted: August 26, 2026

The senior admin staff do not care about the kids. Its a shame. The teachers do their best with the poor leadership. T would rather protect the shortcomings of her staff and leadership, rather than do whats best for the children.

Posted: June 20, 2026

Let me just give you a list of some of the things that went on during our childs year.
If you are a parent and you are confused about why you cannot get a straight answer about academic curriculum - its because they do not have a curriculum.
Our child got to go out to the playground maybe twice a week IF they were not forced to stay inside the classroom for recess for some random reason.
This school uses incredibly harsh punishments. We heard from other parents that students were getting entire weeks with no recess, no music, no art, no PE. On top of that, they use an extremely outdated color-clip system for behavior that has been proven to be ineffective and harmful.
During our time here, there was a REVOLVING DOOR of teachers leaving left and right. The retention of teachers speaks for itself..
Many students who needed support were neglected. Our family was left in the dark and I am sure it is because this school wants families to know as little as possible about what is happening inside those doors.
There were constant events where we were required to buy things. A large chunk of that fundraiser money goes toward sending the administration on an all expense paid vacation (and they call it professional development).
There are some amazing teachers at this school, but sadly, it seems that many of them are run off by the awful people in charge.

Posted: March 29, 2026

A lot of schools and teachers say they want parent involvement but when our kids started having trouble the teachers barely returned emails and would only engage us with an occasional zoom meeting - never in person. We asked for the lesson plan so that we could repeat the entire day at home and were denied. We wanted more engagement but we were resisted at every attempt.

Posted: January 26, 2026

Please believe the negative reviews that people wrote. I wouldnt wish this school on my worst enemy. My son went here in kindergarten and is now in second grade and still talks about how horrible his French teacher treated him. I wasnt surprised because the way the principal spoke to me when I attempted to walk up to get my child (on the first week of school) instead of using the car pool lane let me completely shocked. Why the head of a school behaves in this manner is baffling to say the least, but that would explain why so many other administrative staff there feels their behavior is okay. Pulling my son out within a month of being there is one of the best decisions I ever made in my life.

Posted: October 1, 2025

I recently withdrew my daughter due to a situation that started as a small mishap in communication but quickly turned into a huge alarm that this is not the place for my child. My daughter's teacher sent an email instead of using the agenda to communicate my child's concerning behavior. The email used pronouns that didn't match my child so I was confused and asked for clarification - and was advised this email was sent to multiple people. It seemed rushed and not detailed. I requested a meeting with the teacher and was told that they would not be available and that I needed to sign up for conferences which were a month away. I had to go through the principal to get the meeting, and on the meeting it was clear that they were not interested in partnering with me to address my child's concerns. Mind you - I requested the meeting. When I asked for more accurate communication to address details that were presented during the meeting but NEVER addressed to me directly, I was told that they didn't want to give me negative feedback about my child. I asked what they used to redirect or correct the children and they had nothing other than a clipping down system which they told me the child can clip back up during the day so I would never know how many times my child actually clipped down. The only offer to answer the communication request was to put my child on a behavior plan. Again - this is the first communication from this teacher and I requested the meeting. I quickly understand why my child seemed like she was shrinking her confidence and often said she didn't want to go to school.

I have already enrolled my child in a new school and with giving the teacher NO information on who my child is, she has already called me during the children's specials time to let me know how impressed she was with my daughter just within the first hour. I am so happy my child is with a teacher that cares about her and a school that will support her needs. ICS is intriguing because of the language offerings, but there isn't much else that I was impressed with. My child's new school is a much better structure and has a lot more to offer to us as a family.

Posted: July 24, 2025

Ive been attending ICSAtlanta since kindergarten and I can say that I actually really kinda like it here. Im close with pretty much every kid in my grade (all 50 or so of them) and we all mostly get along. Bullying isnt really a thing at ICSA because literally every kid is nerdy in their own way. I can speak fluently in my second language. Its pretty different than sending your kid to a normal public school (not that I would know) because its a pretty small. Ive enjoyed my time here though and Ive made so many irreplaceable memories. Also!! theres so many more kids in the Spanish track than any other. Put your kids in Mandarin and French. !!

Posted: April 8, 2025

Parents are not encouraged to be part of the learning process. Parents are walking wallets and the children the hook to that wallet. The school openly speaks about not feeding the children thats the parents job to make lunch every day. They dont meet with parents in person making true empathetic responses impossible. Children learn that their parents are not a viable source of information because the schools dismissal of parent requests.

Posted: November 18, 2024

Worst school ever! It only makes sense if you don't already live in an area with good schools. If you do, go with your local school. If not, this school is only slightly better than a school rated a 6. They intentionally "weed out" kids who score lower on the standardized tests. They do this by way of unsubstantiated behavioral modification "plans" (mostly given to students of color). This forces parents of those kids to leave, resulting in higher test scores. They do not have the resources or the staff to provide additional support to children who may be struggling in math or reading, so be prepared to spend $$$$ on outside tutors. No lunch. No field trips. Lack of socialization. Just do DuoLingo or hire a language tutor.

Posted: June 16, 2024

Great school. My child started in kind and graduated in 8th grade from middle school with a very good base of mandarin. She can read, write and converse in the language. She is extremely motivated to continue her studies of the language in high school. She has also gotten credit for four high school classes before attending. I would totally suggest this school if you are looking for diversity and language acquisition.

Posted: June 14, 2024

Nine years and over 64,000 miles of driving to and from school have been worth it! Our older daughter is fully prepared to attend high school. She has been accepted to the top high school in Georgia, GSMST. Due to our location in a different county, she had to take an advanced math test, which she successfully passed without extra math lessons or private tutors. In addition to receiving excellent education in English and math, she also excelled in French, consistently receiving compliments from native speakers for her French-speaking skills. ISCAtlanta also offers a close-knit community where every teacher knows every student. Without a doubt, our younger daughter will also continue attending the same school.

Posted: June 11, 2024

My son has been at the school from the very beginning. We do not speak the target language at home, yet he graduated 8th grade with a Global Seal of Biliteracy. Half of the instructional day is spent in the target language in grades K-5. In middle school, 2 of the 7 periods are in the target language. The fact that he was able to achieve such a high level of language proficiency is a testament to this school, its methodology, and its excellent teachers. He will go into high school with THREE credits in the target language. He will be ready to take AP and IB language courses. If you are looking for a dual immersion school, this is an excellent choice!

Posted: May 14, 2024

We have had a child at the school since 2017. Our first has had an overall good experience, though things are beginning to stack up in the negative direction.
The problems really became obvious this year as it started with teachers placing our youngest into ADHD treatment without ever talking with the parents. They also began attempting to punish the ADHD out of him by assigning many days of silent lunch, with holding recess and giving a 4th grader detention. All for spoken items and never with the intention of violence. Silent lunch consists of the child sitting beside the receptionist at the entrance of the school, while visiting parents and children from other grades and classes pass by to go the the playground for recess. This is seclusion and bullying by the administration.
We have since pulled our youngest, but the admin keeps adding more and more questionable items. The child of one of the Staff has used explicit language and bullied others frequently, yet is often not punished. The admin cares so much for their test scores that they told children if they had runny noses during milestone week not to come to school.
They recently told students going on their field trip to Europe that if they misbehave while on the trip they will take their phones from them, essentially preventing them from calling or checking in with their family. The parents here are generally great, as well as most the students. There are great teachers and teachers that might as well be bullies as they seem happy to punish those not having good enough scores in their classes. The admin is where the biggest problem lies. They control the PTO, the public facebook pages and censor anything negative about the school. They also push students out that bring down averages and will punish the poor performers until there is no choice but to leave.

Posted: May 13, 2024

We've been part of the school since 2017 when our oldest kid started in 1st grade. The school academically has been great for our kids, and we love the IB program curriculum. The teachers are knowledgeable, and most teachers are great. We love the parent involvement in the school as well as the dual language immersion program and the diversity in the school base. I would recommend the school but with some reservations. For instance, we truly believe that a change in Admin is warranted. Unfortunately, the Executive Director (principal) runs the school as a dictatorship. They have closed-door policies and rarely (if not never) meet with parents when parents request it. Admin is not open to listen to different ideas or suggestions. They lack in communication and transparency. The way they punish kids can be harsh by taking recess from elementary students (even when this may be illegal under GA legislation). They also, make students sit in the front desk area to eat their silent lunch when they are grounded visible to all school visitors which can be perceived as some sort of humiliation. They single out challenging kids and they do not accomodate for special needs like ADHD. The principals kid attends the school and they get away with poor/challenging behavior because my parent is the Principal, and I can do whatever I want. There is no lunch vendor, and the school has decided to not do anything about it despite an overwhleming request from parents to please help install a new lunch vendor. This is very inconvenient for parents/guardians having to pack lunches every day and also for low income families. The School Board doesnt hold Admin accountable which leaves parents without any recourse. Also, the amount of bullying in school has increased significantly with little to no change. One kid in middle school was found with a Kill List and the kid is back in the classroom after a short suspension. We are disappointed at the school primarily due to poor administration. We believe that if Admin changes their approach, the school environment for the kids would improve significantly.

Posted: March 28, 2024

Ive currently attended this school for about 9 years and i can say the school can be very hit or miss. Some of the teachers can be amazing and turn into your best friend, but other than that fact, this school kinda sucks. Im currently in the 8th grade and i can say that all these activities and other little events they try to plan are very immature and kiddish for people our age. They make us participate in the same things the elementary schoolers do and to be frank, its embarrassing. As well as this, i dont believe that some of these teachers are qualified to actually teach. We do have some great teachers but some of them dont seem to know what theyre doing. Our science classes are separated into 2 and while our class seems to be on track and actually learning, the other class just seems to do whatever and play whenever the teacher feels like it. We have groups like SOS to prevent suicide and self harm or something? but all they do is suggest stupid ideas to help connect the school (they dont do anything). Not to mention that our school barely prepares us for highschool. Weve gotten one measly 40 minute class about it and nothing else. Since our school does so many thing differently, none of us are going to be prepared. Were also not allowed to use our phones at all, not even at lunch or carpool. Speaking of carpool, they make us stand outside on the parking lines and expect us to not be distracted when its really hot/cold and proceed to humiliate and scream at us when we miss our car and when our car is at the ned of the carpool line, they expect us to run all the way down there. Recently they made the bathroom limit 4 people at a time, and put a monitor next to the ms bathrooms. Theres a stall with a broken door in the boys bathroom and a broken stall in the girls bathroom that have been broken for months. Not to mention the fact that the elementary school kids are allowed to use our bathrooms (which are small with only 3 working stalls) but we arent allowed to use theirs?(they have 9 stalls) so whenever were at pe, we have to walk all the way down the hall. Lunch is also only 25 minutes..We have no school lunch, the dresscode is too strict + terrible, the rules about gum are actually insane, the teachers deserve more pay, the principals and admins dont care about anything(it doesnt look like it), theres so much racism and bullying happening that goes unnoticed, and rules about deodorant should be implemented because the classrooms stink.

Posted: December 3, 2023

I personally like the School. It's a state public charter school which offers IB program. I think this is a great opportunity for small kids to receive wide broad education. They learn not only about USA, but also about target language country.
Kids have a lot of interesting projects, crafts, events during school year: Christmas Market Show, Language Festival.

I am skeptical about some teachers background, not sure if they are certified teachers or not. Some teacher can not handle kids behavior at school. Please read bad reviews below, and I agree with the majority of them.

The school doesn't offer gifted program for students until 4th grade. the public schools offer gifted program since Kindergarten.

Posted: August 1, 2023

We love the International Charter School of Atlanta. I am a huge fan of the IB curriculum and love that the school offers it for the early years program. My kids have thrived at ICSA and demonstrate a curiosity for learning. We love the language immersion and the rest of the academics are rigorous as well.

Posted: May 10, 2023

Where to begin. We had such high hopes for the elementary school, given the language immersion and diversity, but after two years I have to argue that my child would be better off studying Spanish with a tutor, or as a summer activity. The headache that comes with enrollment is not worth the language benefit.

To start, they do not have a lunch program, so be prepared to pack a lunch and snack for your child each each day. A lot of parents chose to leave after the removal of the lunch vendor program. They also do not offer a good after-school program. It's filled on a first come first served basis, and if you miss the day and the opening hour for registration, by even a few minutes, you could be stuck having to find another afterschool care option, or just resolve yourself to sitting in the dreaded carpool line every day for a month at 2 p.m. The only options are everyday care for about $340 / month, or Wednesdays only for $180 / month.

They also use the color coded behavior chart system which, depending on your child, can either be good or bad. There are many studies on how this system is psychologically damaging for children. Our child has been affected it by it, so we no longer parent around to it. I can write a dissertation on the frustrations we've had with this system, but if you do your own research, you'll see. There are far better ways to manage a child's behavior.

The teachers are "okay". It's not Hogwarts. Like all schools, you have some that shouldn't be there, either due to their attitude towards the children, or their ability to manage their classroom. I do oftentimes feel that my child's ability in math and reading is hindered due to the second language requirement, since they spend half the day speaking and learning in their language path. For kindergarten - 3rd grade, this can be tough. Our child was frustrated a lot because he was not understanding the teacher. We had to tutor him more in math and reading because he was not receiving the same time and attention on the subjects as kids at other, competing schools without a language program.

Lastly, if your child has any interest in sports or clubs, this is not the school for you. They offer a small selection of clubs for $200. They are ran by the teachers, so don't expect anything too robust.

Essentially, I would choose another school and save yourself the frustration. Spend all the money you're going to spend at this school on a tutor for your child's desired language instead.

Posted: June 3, 2022

If you are looking for sports and clubs this school is not for you. However, if you are looking for a diverse school that throws your student into languages and all the wonderful things that follow, this is it!
ICSAtlanta has some of the most wonderful teachers we have ever had at both elementary and middle school level.
My daughter has studied German since this school opened its doors and now she is taking German Honors at High School in the Fall.
My son began at Kindergarten and is now heading into 4th grade.
With the choice of German, French, Spanish and Mandarin there is no other school like this!

Posted: October 9, 2019

We have not run into any issues thus far with bullying but have seen some of the messages and programs they run about the issue and approve.

Posted: October 9, 2019

We believe in positive reinforcement and so far the teachers have been patient and empathetic with studentseven when it comes to discipline. No yelling or shaming. In our experience they have all led by example when it comes to character.

Posted: October 9, 2019

We've been kept informed throughout. The curriculum nights are informative and helpful, as well. The family events are also niceI think they work hard to build a sense of community. We haven't personally had to communicate with leadership about any issues but feel comfortable doing so if we ever have one.

Posted: October 9, 2019

Our son has outpaced some of the learning for kids his age but we do feel that he has been challenged pretty consistently. We've been really happy with the school and feel that we made a good choice. Sometimes he gets bored but that could be a personality thing vs. the curriculum.

Posted: October 9, 2019

I can't speak to whether or not homework in general is effective. His grades are good and he improves in terms of language and that could have to do with reinforcing the concepts at home but not sure. The amount of homework seems a little high for a second grader BUT that could be a sign of the times (there was much less homework when I grew up). Because we all get home so late during the week, we typically reserve homework for weekends. It takes him between 2-3 hours to completewould not be as big of a deal if you spread it out through the week but it's not an option for us.

Posted: October 9, 2019

Our son is in his 3rd year at ICSA and so far we've been really happy with the teachers. His grades have been consistently good and we feel that he's adapted to the language well. They've also all stayed in communication with us and handled discipline in a really positive and constructive way.

Posted: October 9, 2019

Our experience has been really good. Our son has been challenged, he's built friendships, he's had nurturing and patient teachers, and he's really improved in terms of language fluency. The ASP has been great, as well. I felt a ton of mom guilt about working full-time and him staying in school after hours but it's genuinely his favorite part of the day. That's when he's able to connect with other kids, exercise, learn new things like karate, and just be a kid. We're the only family in our neighborhood that doesn't send our kid to the public elementary schoolthat was a bit scary at first. ICSA does a good job of building a sense of community with like-minded people and it's made us feel like we made the right choice. I always get paranoid that when someone writes a really positive review that it's skewed for some reason (is that just me?). I'm here to tell you I'm a regular parent and ICSA has been 100% the right choice for our family. I feel really grateful that our son goes here.

Posted: May 16, 2019

They overloaded my kids in homework, even my 1st grader, and gave them packets of work to have done by the end of the week. They were returned at a later time graded but didn't go over the homework with the kids.

Posted: May 16, 2019

The administration is not effective at all. It's not too noticeable until there's a problem that needs attention and then the problems with the admin become very apparent.

Posted: May 16, 2019

I don't think this school has the resources of a regular public school to handle many learning differences.

Posted: May 16, 2019

The first year was great, the second and third years were OK but the beginning of this school year (2019) was a disaster. My daughter was having trouble in her math class and the teacher's solution was to tell her to watch videos of the Khan Academy at home. The lessons were being taught in the target language, which is fine, but they weren't being backed up in English. I tried meeting with the administration but they weren't responsive to the situation. My daughter was failing in math and English the first month of the school year so I got her out of there and sent her back to her zoned school. She made A's and B's the rest of the year. There *are* some very good teachers at ICS but there are unfortunately just as many bad teachers and your experience will largely be dictated by which you get. I couldn't risk my kids' education any longer so I pulled them out. I was sad about it because we'd been with the school since the beginning and were very hopeful about the school's potential.

Posted: January 13, 2019

The first 2 years were great but things have been steadily declining. The middle school is a disaster and the Principal is not a leader nor does she have the experience or knowledge on how to deal with issues that arise. Foreign language teachers come and go and a lot of parents have become employed by the school simply because they can speak the foreign language. A once promising school is now a huge disappointment.

Posted: September 20, 2018

The blogs are helpful, but can be a lot to keep up with because of multiple teachers.

Posted: September 20, 2018

We have had a great experience with all but one, which is typical in any school.

Posted: September 20, 2018

The language immersion is very special. Our family speaks another language other than English and home so now our kids are proficient in 3 languages. The school size is ideal. The school is growing, and of course not perfect, but we made the right choice for our kids.

Posted: September 13, 2018

We haven't had an incident, but I know they have some programs in place and promote the no

Posted: September 13, 2018

We love this School. The teachers are wonderful and caring. I love that it feels like a small school and most of the parents are very involved with their kid's education. Also, it is very diverse, very International, which we love. It is amazing to see how well the kids can interact in their second language. They follow the IB curriculum, it is wonderful, as it makes the kids aware of the world they live in, not just the country they live in, and they become little global citizens. We really love the school.

Posted: January 18, 2018

From personal experience. My student was bothered very bad on too many occasions to names. The other student was never suspended or anything. The student's parent eventually withdrew the student because of the many meetings she had to come in for. But never did the principal or counselor reach out to me to say anything or offer assurances.

Posted: January 18, 2018

I am enjoying the language immersion part. The teachers would rather die than call to clarify any concerns you may. The rigor and high performance expectations for on level students in nearly non-existent. Leadership is horrible. The middle school Assistantomorrow Director is phenomenal, she should run the whole school.

Posted: January 18, 2018

In middle school the HW is okay and more overwhelming. In elementary school the HW is a GENERAL packet that doesn't specifically address the standards for the week. The students also do NOT go over HW at all in the elementary school once turned in.

Posted: January 18, 2018

It's the luck of the draw of you get a "good" teacher or not so great. One things for sure, across the board on the English learning side, rigor is NOT a priority.

Posted: January 18, 2018

I know of no character education programs in place, outside of the no bullying campaign and no place for hate campaign. Those are only 1 week activities.

Posted: January 18, 2018

Tanya Parker while very nice has tunnel vision. Everything is about how she rooms it should be. Her hand is on EVERYTHING and with the ideas of others never even being considered there is a ltitle room for effective growth. She's not an effective leader... until you have a situation with your child, you would never know how unprofessional and uninformed she is about how to leado. Her lack of experience show up in how tyne school is run. Look at her resume, I could be the Director if that's all that is required to run a school.

Posted: January 18, 2018

I have no idea, but they aren't effects yet at much of anything but passing people off.

Posted: October 24, 2017

We have been an ICSA family since the doors opened and have had a wonderful experience. My kids are happier than ever before and are almost fluent in their chosen second language. I am confident that my kids are getting a world class education and in an environment that supports and celebrates diversity and cultural awareness. Both of my kids are also excelling in Math, English, Social Studies etc. From my experience, the parents that are unhappy are parents that depend on teachers and school staff to raise their children and teach them what they should be learning at home. Those same parents are the ones that don't attend any board meetings or volunteer any of their time to the school. I work full time and I have done both and it has made a huge difference in understanding the teaching methods used by my kids teachers and to make suggestions on how things can be better.

Posted: October 16, 2017

Untrained on how to handle bullying and usuall turn the table on the child bullied.

Posted: October 16, 2017

no this school
is ran like a totalitarian state.

Posted: October 16, 2017

Leadership is imcompetent and has no idea how to run this total chaos

Posted: October 16, 2017

They fly the homework online extremely disorganized crowd.

Posted: October 16, 2017

Some teachers have no education background they are all underpaid and look unhappy. Kindergarden teacher with no early chldhood training and barely thought in highschool
before working in park and nursing home. not the right fit

Posted: October 16, 2017

Terrible kids dont feel safe or loved much less nurtured