Horizon Community Learning Center

I am a successful, well-adjusted graduate of this school. I attended from K-12th and have never regretted my choice to stay there. I greatly enjoyed that my school was a smaller community than most. I felt that the students were very supportive of each other, and very frequently made friendships that went beyond the expected cliques. It s true that small schools are not the right fit for every student. Some kids seek more sports and elective opportunities and would rather not know everyone in their grade. Students who left Horizon went searching for the public school experience. For me the benefits outweighed the things I "missed out" on. I had teachers, passionate about their subjects, who cared about my individual education and did whatever they could to help me succeed. I am who I am today because of my experience at this school and my interactions with the community there. If you are a parent searching for a good school for your kids, I highly recommend HCLC. *Also, the drama program throughout the grades is phenomenal. If your students are musically or dramatically inclined, they will find this experience nowhere else.*

I love this school! I looked dozen of schools for my daughter now that she started Kindergarden. Since the beginning I loved Horizon we were in the waiting list and was luckly called at the beginning of the year, she started on August 2012 and so far it has been a great experience. She loves to go to school every day, she started behind of what she was supposed to know when starting Kindergarden and I was amazed on how fast she was learning and now she is exceding her grade lavel. Teachers are lovely, and care alot for the kids. They do teach students at their level which is great since some know more than others and the ones behind they advance tremendously and the ones that are knew more are continously challeged! I would definetly recommend this school. Take this from a parent that did not care to drive 30 min only so that her daughter would get the best possible education !!!!
—Submitted by a parent

Met a number of ex-Horizon kids at Desert Vista, after they had dropped Horizon and come to a real High School. They were amazed by the choice of Sports, Extra-curricular opportunities and Academics. Horizon kids do struggle to fit in at DV and I guess later at State or out of State college's, I think they are 'too closeted' at Horizon. Not very strong academics we have very few Horizon kids in my AP and DE credit classes at DV, like Stats, APUSH and EuroAP. Most stronger academic students at DV come from Akimel or Altadena, Horizon has a horrid reputation in the community for schooling 'troubled kids and their parents'

it is an 'ok' school for elementary, but it is Horrible for junior high and high school. trust me, if you love your kids, don't send them here.
—Submitted by a parent

If your student has already chosen his career and wishes to take classes that tailor to his choice, Horizon is definitely not the place. No other classes are offered than those that are general for graduation. Very little outside what is required for graduation is offer with the exception of musical/choir classes.

There is so much I can say about this school. I went there from 2nd grade until the middle of 7th. At first I assumed this school was much better than public schools. This is false as I was learning at the same pace as the local public schools. This school is full of sheltered children, believing that horizon is better than others. All the kids I knew were extremely arrogant, close-minded, and rude. The same with the teachers. The office is very biased against kids that don't do as good or are not as well behaved. Once you do something wrong they expect that everything that is bad is your fault. The teachers favor specific students and sometimes even make fun of some ounto other students. This school is way over dramatic and i was miserable the whole time. Eventually my family got fed up and pulled me. Now I am more successful in public school and people are more respectful there. I would never recommend anyone to this school.

When I came to Horizon in 7th grade I liked it enough. The teachers were nice, the students were friendly, and the workload wasn't too heavy or too light. However, as time went on things seemed to change. The teachers seemed to become less approachable and they blatantly picked favorite students over others. The students caused a lot of unnecessary drama and discrimination and I noticed there was a huge clique problem that the teachers almost seemed to encourage. Also, as the work became more challenging, the teachers seemed less willing to help and I saw many students fall behind (myself included) by the end of 8th grade year. If your child has problems in school or issues making friends I do not reccomend Horizon at all. When I went in i was a straight A student, when I came out I had a C average. Proceed with caution if your planning on attending Horizon.

As a current high school student at Horizon, I can definitely say this school is not for everyone. The school has a higher expectations of student behavior than the other high schools in the area, so be prepared for that. The school lacks many electives that others offer and there are not that many clubs, but there are some. (the best is the HS travel club, taking an overseas trip every year!) There are some great teachers, and some not so good ones. The office staff is mediocre, always have had a rude experience when I needed to visit the front desk. Parents are involved in the school, which is good. The sports teams are okay, nothing great compared to big high schools (which is expected). My biggest complaints with the school are: the lack of school pride amongst the students, which is completely terrible and a general dislike of the school is popular, how the school tries to keep its student body sheltered, and the lack of programs and electives for students. For these reasons, I plan on moving to DV next year, where I believe I can obtain a more rounded education than at horizon. However, the social environment at DV is probably a wreck compared to Horizon.

Very Please with this school. As I only have experience with the K-4, I can only comment on this portion of the school. I do think the HS is lacking some extra activities and not sure is it's a great fit for select students. However the early years have been fantastic! Yes poor behavior is dealt with firmly, consistently and fairly. Curriculum is so much better then the rote learning at public schools. My child loves the Thematic learning style of the school.
—Submitted by a parent

For years I thought this school was great. Had friends there, everyone knew each other, teachers cared, and small classes. Now I'm a freshman and I want to go to a big HS. It hardly has any clubs or elective classes that someone would desire. Honestly, the dress code is not high on the long list of cons. They're also very closed minded, (ex, homophobic, freak out about every little thing). The drama is amplified because the school is so small. Everyone acts like it's academically amazing, but a lot of kids fail there, and as you get older the teachers get more strict, cruel, and difficult to communicate with. I'm fed up with this school. Being an honors student, I feel if I went to a big school I'd have a better experience, more opportunities, and enjoy classes more. For example, I used to love english, it was my passion, I wanted to even teacher english in a HS one day, but I had a teacher, one who was very arrogant and expected too much, and now I hate going to the class. Honestly, think it over before you decide on it. They have no funding, they freak out if you say "gay" or "kiss", and the dances are horrible. I want a real HS exp. I'm also tired of everyones judgement there.

My children were lucky enough to get in on the Lottery 3 years ago. The staff are all happy, passionate about education, and dedicated (Quite different from our previous school). My children are always learning at their level. They are not tied into the general learning track for their entire grade and if they are prepared to move up to the next learning group, they can.They don't have to wait for the rest of the class or group to catch up. Also, I don't have to worry about kids with behavior problems detracting from my children's learning time or negatively influencing my children. The children are eager to learn, polite and respectful to adults and each other. The PE program is unparalleled. My children's instructor just wont the best teacher in AZ award.The Music and Spanish programs are good, but not stressful K-4. The Music/Performing Arts Program is exceptional 5-12th. The Master Teachers are wonderful and I think the key to maintaining high expectations from the Teachers and students. I am so thankful we have found this school
—Submitted by a parent

The review listed below (posted October 31) is factually, statistically, and grammatically incorrect. Just sayin'.
—Submitted by a parent

Majority of students here have failed at the Prep schools of Desert Vista and or Brophy, teaching is OK, but again most of the adjusted, smart kids in the Awhatukee area go to Desert Vista. Always been considered the school drop outs and ill adjusted kids go to if they fail at Brophy or DV, that said it is a good choice for those who may not succeed at a better prep school and therefore offers a good alternative, although in the community it does appear to have a certain stigma attached to those who attend.

The group work & enrichment programs are good. Students learn to cooperate & communicate in groups. The phonics program is very weak, which has been frustrating. In addition, subjects are taught by theme, which doesn't always lead to a good review of previously learned material. The best example of this teaching method is illustrated in the way the 'specials' subjects (technology, music and Spanish) are taught. The students may have Spanish for 3 weeks, tech for 3 weeks & then music for 3 weeks before repeating the cycle. Consequently, there is no Spanish review for 6+ weeks until the next session. I have found this same pattern in most core subjects (math & phonics). This doesn't lead to high retention or the ability to build upon concepts. There seems to be no logical foundation for teaching math & phonics. Be prepared to review and teach your child what the teachers
—Submitted by a parent

The education level is above average. The interest in the school to assist and help excel the children is above and beyond the call of duty.
—Submitted by a parent

We were very enthusastic about sending our student to HCLC. Our experience was largely negative and we moved our student to another school. The teachers were cold and unprofessional. Our student has always loved his teachers in pre-school and kidnergarten and he did not like his teachers at this school. Neither did we. The homework approach is unorganized and frustrating for kids and parents alike. It is an aggressive learning program which requires intimate parent involvement. If you are not personally visiting the school often to make sure you understand the concepts being taught, your student will get lost and you will be unable to successfully tutor them. We provided feedback to school administrators on multiple occasions, but nothing happened. To make matters worse, picking up your student takes forever due to a largely unorganized traffic flow. And there are very few parking spaces available to parents.
—Submitted by a parent

My family has to move out of state after one year at Horizon and it breaks my heart. 4 years here and 3 schools and we finally were at the right one. The bar is set high. The don't tolerate discipline problems. The goal is to help the child, but when that isn't happening, they do not let it disrupt the learning environment. My child has flourished there. He feels safe & he isn't teased. His classwork was challenging and made him think. Project group is a great concept and I love to see what kids are capable of when inspired. There is no art program in the lower grades, but his creativity has not suffered and he writes beautifully now. And my thanks go out to all the teacher who have made this seemingly big school feel like family. We are very sad to leave.
—Submitted by a parent

i have benn at HCLC for all of my learning time and i am nit impressed the teachers pick on 'popular' kids and over react for little bad things but when something big happens they ignore it until 2 or 3 weeks later and by then it might be too late. And the dress code it proposterous you cant wear shorts shorter than your fingertips placed at your sides.
—Submitted by a student

I am stunned at some of the negative comments here and have had kids at Horizon long enough to recognize that some of these parents didn't like it when their kids were disciplined -- there is no tolerance for 'crap' at Horizon. As for the teachers, I know many, many long-term members, but I also know that if you are not a good teacher you don't get a contract the following year. You want to know the bottom line? The school, like all smaller schools, lacks in extracurricular variety. But... its test scores are off the charts, it posted a ZERO failure rate on the AIMS and the last graduating group of 78 kids posted $3.2 million in scholarships and tuition awards. There is a lot of jealousy about this school and what it has accomplished. Its scores and prominence speaks for themselves.
—Submitted by a parent

I have a Kindergartner at HCLC. I searched very hard last year for the right school for my son. I am thrilled with Horizon. I am impressed with their attention to my son's abilities. He entered K reading at a 3rd grade level and 1st grade math. There were other K's his age with the same skills and the teacher has tailored their reading and math lessons to their ability level. They use positive reinforment for discipline. The teachers and parents are kind to each other and supportive of each other. The drop-off/pick-up situation is handled well, not the horror I had heard about.
—Submitted by a parent