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Cowan Elementary School
(512) 841-2700
2817 Kentish Dr
Austin, TX 78748
Level: PK-5
District: Austin Independent School District

Extended Information

In-depth school information including test scores, student stats, parent ratings and reviews for Cowan Elementary School, Austin, TX.

Census Info	Value	Year
Black, non-Hispanic:	6.2%	(2008)
Hispanic:	38.3%	(2008)
American Indian/Alaskan Native:	0%	(2008)
Asian/Pacific Islander:	6.5%	(2008)
White, non-Hispanic:	49.1%	(2008)

Cowan Elementary School Ratings Summary

Average Quality Rating	4
Average Principals Rating	4
Average Teachers Rating	4
Average Activities Rating	4
Average Parents Rating	4
Average Safety Rating	4

Cowan Elementary School Reviews


Posted By: parent Quality Score: 1 2009-08-27 “Coming from a school on the east side of Austin to a supposedly better nieghborhood and better schools, I found Cowan, SO FAR, to be below my expectations. My daughter was forced to switch classrooms because they do not like having more than one child with the same name in the classroom during the first week of school. My daughter is not allowed to eat sweet snacks that I pack her for lunch because other children are on strict diets. I live a very busy and spontaneous lifestyle due to my work so I try to be with my child as much as I can be, but its hard to do that when I must notify the teacher in writing of any changes 24 hours ahead of time. They are nice yes, but it seems this is just for show. I have no choice but to give Cowan a chance.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: decline 2009-04-29 “i transfered my daughter to cowan, and i found out that my daughter was DRA reading below..and required her to attend tutoring..wow..her old school never mentioned about her drea reading level!..i love cowan!” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 3 2008-12-18 “Cowan seems like a wonderful school until you go somewhere else. Sadly the principal focuses on TAKS and therefore the children do not advance at the pace of other students in other area schools. They are taught to just 'pass' the test, therefore that becomes their focus even well beyond their elementary years. While Cowan has some wonderful teachers, we would not recommend this school due to the lack of focus on a well rounded education. Many area schools focus on TAKS for just a few weeks, whereas Cowan preps them nearly the entire school year. We also believe the gifted program is a complete joke. Our daughter did not excel at all in this school and our son went on to middle school with underdeveloped writing skills. After speaking to many parents this seemed to be a widespread problem amongst Cowan graduates.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 5 2008-03-02 “Cowan is an incredible school. This is our second year. It started small and although it has grown in the last year with some re-districting, the 'small school feel' remains. The teachers and the staff are exceptional and have many years of experience on average. The principal has high standards for her teachers and encourages higher education. They have a lot of teachers that are National Board Certified and they are very easy to communicate with. The socioeconomic population is mixed, but the school is equipped to provide for students of all levels. I have a child in the gifted and talented program and her needs are being met. She loves her school and her teachers and we could not be happier. The discipline is well-handled in my opinion in contrast to other reviews. We get alot of positive encouragement for good behavior. Go Cowan!” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 5 2007-09-28 “This is my family's first year at Cowan. I have been very impressed with the overall school climate. The principal, staff, teachers and parents have been welcoming. The school is clean and well equipped. My son absolutely loves his teacher, is challenged and is enjoying learning!” Posted By: parent Quality Score: decline 2007-08-28 “I am highly impressed by staff and teachers,principal and assistant principal. We moved from California last year. My child was going to the best school in our district.When we came here my child was very nervous.All 3rd teachers are wonderful but my son's teacher is a gem.She helped him in academics and also helped make friends with other kids.They have a very nice system to be well behaved and disciplined,staying focussed,making good choices.I am impressed.Yesterday was first day of 4th grade.The bus driver did not have our address in his list,my child got back to school and after an hour of panic when I went to school to pick him up,the assistant principal made sure that she lets me know his right bus.She kept contacting the transportation and finally called me at 7:00 p.m. to let me know his right bus.Cowan has wonderful staff.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 1 2007-08-27 “I removed my son from Cowan after a 2 year and 2 month struggle. This schools is unequipped to handle bright young children. The teachers have difficulty differentiating for children who perform higher than grade level. The teachers are not properly trained to handle discipline issues, focusing only on negative punitive measures rather than working to find a positive solution. After my son became frightened of going to school, we approached AISD for a school change where our son is now thriving in a positive nurturing environment that meets his academic needs. Overall, we found the education lacking and the staff to be rigid, harsh and unqualified.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 5 2007-06-03 “My son just completed his 3rd year at Cowan and is more then ready for 3rd grade (4th grade at any other school). Mrs. Brown was an angel and helped my son make gifted and talented this year. I am so proud and simply love the school. It is clean, inviting, and very well organized. Thank you Cowan Elementary for educating our wonderful children.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 4 2006-02-19 “Cowan is a great school. The teachers are highly qualified and the infrastructure is nice. The principle is a real go-getter who may be more concerned with the TAKS scores than I would like. However, in this era of funding based on TAKS scores, I am sure the school will continue to bring in monies. I wish the parental involvement was stronger.. most of the families at Cowan consist of two working parents.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 4 2006-01-25 “My son is in second grade and the entire second grade team is wonderful. They are organized, obviously experienced, and attentive to the different needs of the different levels in class. I couldn't be happier and neither could my son.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 4 2006-01-11 “I have a child in the first grade so I only have 2 years of experience with Cowan. Pretty good school as far as Texas public schools go. Clean and well kept. Teacher quality really depends on the luck of the draw and your personal preferences. As with any school...you don't always mesh well with certain teachers. They do tend to focus on discipline and are quite strict. They have a behavior ranking system and it could take something as small as your child talking once in the lunch line to lose a rank for the day. It can become quite negative...especially for young children just starting out. The science education is outstanding and they have the basic 3 (art, music, pe). Parents are involved and have easy access to the teachers. Communication via email, phone and meetings is frequent. Hope this helps.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 4 2005-01-21 “Cowan is a nice school from the outside to the inside. The building is very welcoming with the giant size pillars painted like crayola crayons. Inside the building the first thing you see to your right is the office and the women in there are very sweet and have gotten to know exactly who I am and who my child is. The nurse my daughter has had to visit is also very sweet. This school has a Pre-K program, which my daughter was able to attend, thank goodnes. The teacher was excellent. Her current teacher is great too. She loves the art and p.e. classes they have and the best part (she loves it too) is the after-school child-care held at the school by the YMCA. That saves her from having to be taken by bus somewhere else. Things have been great, I'll miss it for both her and I.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 5 2004-09-21 “Successful education is a teamwork job between the school and parents; i.e. #1. Cowan teachers and Staff, with the good leadership of the Principal, Ms. Glenn, need to be commended for all their day to day efforts in providing the necessary tools for learning. My daughter has been with Cowan for 4 years now, and at 3rd grade her DRA is above and beyond at level of 6-8th grade. Too often are teachers blamed for poor student performance but not being praised for their dedication and endurance. The school counselor's perseverance in dealing with kids who need personal attention, is super! #2. As parents, with all our strength to achieve the level of excellence for our kids, we should not expect the school to do these things alone. We have a role to play,let's make sure we get involved. Cowan is a great place for our kids.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: 5 2004-05-02 “This is my granddaughter's third year at Cowan and she is now in the 4th grade. She loves school and has had a very positive attitude about her school experiences and her teachers. The after school program is staffed by caring and dedicated counselors. The principal seems to provide good leadership. I would recommend this school to anyone who would ask.” Posted By: parent Quality Score: decline 2004-04-22 “Hi,I relocated to Austin from Laredo, Texas. I just read some of the previous reviews, and I am surprised to hear that the school has such bad reviews. Especially, about the fact that some of the children are taught at a much lower level than they are suppose to be. I believe the AISD, teachers and parents have a moral obligation to give the children of the Austin Community their very best in order to provide better leadership citizen for the future. I know that some teachers are probably underpayed, but the children shouldn't be short changed, as far as, their education is concerned. They shouldn't have to suffer the consequences later on by not being fully prepared to conquer society on a day to day basis. AISD should offer the best quality of education to all the children in each of its schools without any discrimination. Concerned Grandparent.”