Highland High School

I have not had the best interactions with the counseling department or a few of the teachers. There is a mormon bias at this school. Those who say there isn't are mormons. My daughter and I were at orientation right b4 school started,my daughter received a lunch hour that none of her friends had. She was upset I toldher that it was ok. The counselor had just told us that he could not change it because it was too late. I understood. As we were walking out another new student walked up to the same counselor & said I need to change my lunch because my friends from our ward are in a different lunch then me and I want to be with my friends. They started chatting about mutual friends in the ward that they attended together. He said to her hold on, I will be back. He changed this girls lunch. I heard the whole thing, it was to be with her friends. They went to the same ward. After the girl left, I asked the counselor how that just happened and did my daughter need to be mormon to change her lunch? I called him out. Handed him my daughters schedule and said my daughter wanted the other lunch. Without a word he changed my daughters schedule. He knew he was just biased to the mormon kid.
—Submitted by a parent

HHS isn't a welcoming place nor is it academically challanging. My student has learning disabilites and rather than make accommodations and have him take regular classes, as he had done in 8th grade they placed him in all Special education classes. EVEN THOUGH that is a direct violation of IDEA (ie federal law). He has learned nothing this school year, rarely has any homework (usually busywork like crossword puzzles). He never has to study and yet he has all A's and B's. When he tried to get placed in harder classes, the couselor refused. She has also refused to let him take a foreign language when planning for next year, even though it is required for college admission. They have decided that even though my son is smart, because he has LD's he won't be able to go to college. The couselor told him he "would be going straight into the military" even though he has said he does not want to do that. He even has a teacher who will end class early if the students are being disruptive. As far as being "Excelling", one has to remember that in education, Arizona ranks about 45th in the country (depending on the year & what exactly is rated). So HHS is only better than 10% of USA's schools.
—Submitted by a parent

I am currently a freshman at highland high school and I would not recommend this school to anyone who is looking for a challenging education. The teachers at this school will only teach your child the bare minimum and only what will be on the AIMS test. The teachers only care about what's best for your child because the teacher who gets the highest test scores will get extra money. Also, when a student isn't comprehending the topic being taught, the teacher will drop all their plans and stretch the topic until that one student gets it. This can be good or bad depending on if your child is a slow learner, in which case, this is the school for you. Another problem this school has is that students have ADHD and the teachers make no effort to help them. Also, the school takes way too many boundary exceptions. Class sizes have risen from 24 people to a class to more than thirty. If your child has a hard time focusing in class, do not send them here. Lastly, school food quality has decreased dramatically. The school orders the food from different places, freeze them, then reheat when the food is needed. Sometimes the food is not fully defrosted and is cold on the inside.
—Submitted by a student

i disagree with the high rate that this school have, this school get the easy way comparing with others schools. they don't enroll students with low grades or students with special education needs. from here you can't compare this school against the others. i tryed to enroll my daughter on this school but they don't admitted her because she has low grades and they told me that we need to go to another school. we went to gilbert high school and they make a very good plan for my daughter and she graduate on time from this school. i'm very grateful for the hard work gilbert high school did with my daughter. since i know how highland enroll the students. i say they never deserve to compare them with another real high schools. highland has a fake high rate. they do nothing. they only admit students with high grades; therefore those students with highland or without highland will graduate for their self.
—Submitted by a parent

I am alumni at this school and I say it was average at most. There was a bullying problem and most of the faculty were ignorant of it. I read reviews about Mormon bias, and sadly it was true. A few of my teachers made me very uncomfortable for not fitting in with the majority of my peers who are Mormon. LGBTQs and other minorities weren't consider apart of the school community by students. I also felt my mild disabilities weren't taken as serious and were seen as a joke. They didn't take any news about suicidal students seriously as well. One student mentioned that they were students trying to convert, that happened to me as well. If I could go back in time, I would have begged to go to Gilbert High School instead just for diversity alone. High school is not just for academics, it is to learn about others and how you contribute to the whole. Highland just taught me that I was a terrible person for being different in some minor detail and it took me a long time to feel like I am a good person.
—Submitted by a student

Our son is a junior @ Highland and we couldn't be more pleased with the school and the faculty. It is interesting how the subject of religion is used repeatedly as a negative from the reviewers of this site. If your child is comfortable with their personal religious beliefs and respects the beliefs of others, there just isn't a problem. Our son has a lot of friends at Highland, both Mormon and non-Mormon friends. They all get along great and there is never any "converting" attempts from any of them. As for parents that complain about the strict actions of the faculty towards mis-behavior. This is a bad thing??? As long as parents take an attitude of {this isn't "FAIR" to treat my child like this for "teenage mischief"} they might want to take a look at the example they are setting for the very children they are defending. If you are defending their actions by claiming over-reaction of the staff then you are subliminally condoning their actions at the expense of the perceived integrity of the school officials and the rules that are designed to provide a safe and wholesome environment for learning. Bottom line is, children are a product of their environment. Great job Highland!
—Submitted by a parent

For the most part, I'd say highland is above average in performance. The biggest downside is the unhelpful administration and counselors. The counselors are very condescending, and always seem to have a "well that's just too bad" approach. The administration was nicknamed "The Bureaucracy" among my peers. That was my biggest issue. Some people say there is Mormon/religious bias, and I can say that there was at least one teacher that blatantly displayed this bias and had 'favorites'. However, it generally wasn't too big of an issue - on a few occasions other students have tried to "convert" me, and would just not leave me alone, but this review isn't necessarily supposed to be based on a few students. Most of my teachers were "good". A couple were "exceptional", and a few were "bad". It's not the best school if you're looking to make friends or if you want the schedule you were hoping for, nor will you gain much critical thinking skills (mostly just testing skills). You will get a pretty good education though, and in a decent/safe environment. I would give it a 3.5 if that were possible on this site.
—Submitted by a student

To the parent who said there is Mormon "favoritism" that is not true, almost any highschool you can go to there will be a seminary building. There may be alot of LDS kids at Highland but that does not make it a Mormon school. We encourage every religion and encourage kids to be themselves. Basha High School is one 12 percent Mormon and they have a seminary building also, so no, this school does not put favorites on any student of ours. We do our best to succeed with us and our students. So please, take your personal opinions out of that facts of the great things this school can do for our children and youth. Thankyou.
—Submitted by a teacher

Highland High School's music department is amazing, and the Orchestra program is the best in the state.
—Submitted by a parent

1. Academically hard to beat. Minus a few outspoken liberal counselors or teachers the curriculum is still tough to beat. 2. BUT WAIT! Religious favoritism at this school is out of control. The academic and athletic favoritism in favor of Mormons is seriously a scary situation. It might as well be labeled an LDS school. This comment coming from someone who at this moment is voting for Romney. Sad situation here!
—Submitted by a parent

I hated this school. A large percentage of the students that attend Highland act very "uppity" and the teachers/admin are oblivious to the religious pressures.
—Submitted by a student

The administration at Highland needs a serious reality check. I am very disappointed at the way they treated my daughter. I do not recommend attending this school.
—Submitted by a parent

My son graduated from this school in '10, and it was such a relief to know that we didn't have to deal with the school administration any more. We have a perfectly normal 18 year old son who likes athletics and normal teen stuff. Being a teenager, he tended to make some stupid teenage decisions like bringing water balloons to school and throwing paper airplanes across the class. Nothing too serious, just normal things that teens do to get a laugh. Back when I was in high school, if we were caught throwing a paper airplane at someone or if we flicked a rubber band in class, we would typically get a simple warning or at worst a lunch detention. At this school, if you make a simple teenage mistake, you get extreme and harsh punishments way beyond normal. You have no idea how many times my husband and I have had to argue with the administration at this school over simple teenage behavior. I'm not saying that my son is an angel, but the reactions of the administrators are way over the top and to the extreme.
—Submitted by a parent

Great parent involvement, supportive administration and focused faculty and departments. I currently have two children attending Highland and one that graduated two years ago. We have experienced much of what Highland has to offer from sports to music to clubs as well as their focus on academic success. The school is focused on leading the district and being a pioneer in technology. This is a large school and the school population represents the school boundaries with a good mix of different sized homes in different subdivisions. The school has very active boosters supporting over 16 clubs/sports/organizations and it creates an environment where students have opportunities to participate and succeed. I highly recommend Highland High School!
—Submitted by a parent

Wouldn't rather be at any other, low-quality school. Great people, great teachers, GREAT BAND PROGRAM!
—Submitted by a student

This school is great! Hardley any drama or drugs. I love it! Go to this school it rocksssss
—Submitted by a student

I went to and graduated from Highland and it is a great school. There are many opportunities to get involved at the school from comunity service clubs, NHS, student council to Choir, Orchestra, and band. I never once felt excluded in any way shape or form at this school. The staff are always willing to help when it is needed. Yes, there are cliques, but what school doesn't have them?

One cannot take away from HHS the strong academic programs it provides. However, when it comes to athletics the coaches have their favorites and often do not look outside the box. It is to the point that politics overrides its strong academics as it does not provide those who have potential for sports scholarships to go unrecognized because of the athletic favorites. In fact, the varsity team is already selected from the incoming freshman students who played junior high ball-regardless of their skills. Athletic favorites start with coaches who coach league teams as well as being high school coaches.
—Submitted by a parent

The cliques are ridiculous at the school. Separated by religion and/or race. Nearly impossible to make new friends unless the same racial or religious background is shared. The teachers are excellent for the most part. There are a couple religiously zealot teachers. One of whom uses passive aggressiveness to bully students and excessively uses stereotypes although administration won't do anything about that. The extracurricular activities revolve around cliques too. Holding an officer position in clubs is based on a vote by students (popularity vote) and the NHS club excludes students with the same credentials as other students. The school is consisted of mostly LDS students and teachers and most of them are Republican who aren't afraid to show it.
—Submitted by a student

Highland is a great school. The teachers and staff are great to help students. This School knows what it is doing and it will help you child, brother, sister, or someone who you know looking for a great high school. Some of highland qualities are they are organized, they are good at what they do other than teaching, They WIll prepare you for the next thing that comes up when it comes to school and even things that do not pertain to school. I highley reccomend going to this school.
—Submitted by a student