Julian Charter School Innovation Center

My son is just finishing his second year at Innovations Center Temecula and we couldn’t be happier! His teachers have been fabulous and have kept him challenged in all subjects. He attends the four day a week program and we appreciate the flexible schedule of having a homeschool day on Friday. His homeschool days are spent going on educational field trips and doing projects. This independent learning style suits my son perfectly and he is able to work on his own level while being supported by his teacher at school and his parents at home. The teachers are great about giving resources to help support the home learning environment and a small class size gives the teacher a chance to really get to know each child on a personal level. We have a new site coordinator this year who is a fantastic leader and has brought some wonderful new programs to our school. Everyday my son wakes up excited to go to school and is greeted by name by school staff as he walks in the door. Would highly recommend JCSICT!

We enrolled our child into this school at the beginning of this year ¹⁄₂₀₁₅. Since my daughter started Kindergarten early we had to go through many things to get her into our district approved public elementary. After 3 months of my child being bullied, shunned, and told by her teachers to ignore the problem or not to be a tattle teller, my husband and I had enough.
I had been previously homeschooling our child, but it was done privately with my husband funding everything. JCS is a breath of fresh air!
I still am able to instruct my child as I did when I privately home schooled her, but I have JCS complete support. This is so refreshing after many years of doing my own research on the California education website to figure out what the curriculum guidelines for her grade level are, set up a month to month schedule, then search for other homeschooling families within my vicinity so that my children can interact with their own age peer groups.
I still establish our monthly schedule, but the innovation center full day K-​1 once a week program is perfect. Also, the school has a variety of vendors that offers an eclectic selection of activities for their students.
I can write an essay of all the positive aspects of JCS. From the resource center to the facilitators that are there to assist the families of the program, I have nothing but the utmost respect and warm regards.
I truly see us rooting ourselves in this school.

We tried to make JCS Innovation Center work for my kids, but it clearly wasn’t going to work, and I moved all three of them to an amazing charter school last year. There really is no leadership on campus, in the three years we were there, I never met the Executive Director, and there is no Prinicpal, just a «Site Coordinator». There is no phonics program in place for the younger kids, and the parents teach their children 29% of the time. Which could be cool, but there is no support if you have any trouble. My kids were fighting the process, and I had a hard time juggling three projects on a Friday. The school offers the parents no mentor to assist them occasionally when this occurs, offer tips or advice, it was a complete nightmare. Got one group meeting in the two years I requested support. The kids are missing 29% of their core foundational skills with copied packets and silly projects that just take their attention away from what they need to be doing to build competence in the areas needed to excel. The skills and resources needed to complete the projects aren’t taught in the classroom, so it all falls onto the parent.
There is no outdoor play, which forces a real militant structure of control during lunch, etc., and minimal fun and energy output for the kids during the day. They walk in the commercial area that the school is located in. Last year my son had a very autistic boy in his class, while I am all for mainstream education, if that can happen without incident, however, in this case, this boy would scream, have tantrums, and act inappropriately, and the school reactively responded to these instances, and told the parents that everything was peachy, and that there was no problem. It effected the learning process of every kid in that class, as the teacher was that boys full-​time aide. Most of those students left the school last year. The teacher turnover has been about 33% annually, and some of the teachers have been poor choices. Last year the math instructor told his students to look up subject matter on YouTube when they didn’t understand it. LOL! Until, JCS forced tutoring in the morning before school started.
Lastly, one thing I learned last year is that under the TVUSD, each parents that volunteers for more than three hours in a school year, has to complete a Megan’s Law Background Check form to be allowed to volunteer on campus. Because JCS — ICT, does not follow the school districts procedures based on how they chose to run their charter, no volunteers have background checks. This is important to me, I like that this Megan’s Law Background check is in place. No chances with my kids.
Thanks for reading, hope it was helpful.

Great school, got 2 in, and 1 coming next year.