Posted April 26, 2023Submitted by a parent
I am a current senior at Highlands High School and I do NOT recommend this school. As a student at the top of my class who will be attending UCLA as a Gates Scholar, I can say that none of my academic success can be attributed to Highlands High School. Everything I have is because I had to work extremely hard for it. They do not promote academic excellence here. They promote the bare minimum. I received no help applying to my out of state schools because Highlands cares more about sending kids to their partner schools than actually seeing kids excel in tier one universities. They'd rather us go to UTSA so they can say they sent kids to college, but they could care less about retention/graduation rates.There is no school spirit and we have had several weapons on campus, as well as real lock downs. The administration does not promote mental health, good cultural/ethnic relations, and they are never involved in anything. I would like to add - the teachers here at Highlands are WONDERFUL. Highlands has AMAZING teachers, but they are not treated properly by administration, which is why nearly half of our staff is leaving because they want to be treated better, in a school that values academic excellence, school spirit, PROFESSIONALISM, ORDER, and BUREAUCRACY - all of which Highlands does NOT have. Highlands have so much potential, but the administration does not enforce ANYTHING. Just take a look at our attendance and pass rates. They are AWFUL. Students and teachers deserve better. We deserve to feel appreciated. We deserve to have more social activities that promote school spirit, which helps make learning FUN. Students shouldn't have to jump through hoops to host STUDENT LED ACTIVITIES because the administration just doesn't feel like dealing with it. Students should feel safe on campus. We shouldn't have to worry about going to the restroom and having to inhale smoke because administration doesn't know how to enforce the rules. Learning is not fun here. This school doesn't prepare you for college, or life because they continuously lower the standards for the students. I am not the only student OR teacher who feels this way. Highlands needs to do better.
