Los Alamitos High School

I transfered to Los Al this year from a high school in Georgia. I did not come to the school with incredibly high expectations but i am severely disappointed with the lack of attention paid to each individual students' needs. At my old school I was in all honors classes on my way to AP courses my junior year (current year) but when I transfered here I missed the AP deadline and I was forced to sign up for all on level classes (Los Al does not offer honors courses). No one would help me get into more challenging courses. What I have noticed from these on level classes is that it is almost impossible to learn anthing because the teachers always have to direct a good portion of their attention on misbehaving students. I feel like I am not being prepared for college but instead learning why not to become a teacher. The curriculum is also very lacking and unchallenging and I am finding that I have learned most of the content we go over... as a freshman or sophormore at my old school. I do not recommend this school if you want your child to have a challenging education (no matter what level they are on) with some of these classes... you can literally do nothing and still get an "A".
--Submitted by a student

This is my first year at LosAl High as a 10th grader, Its definitely a new experience for me, So Far its A great school , teachers seem great, classes are challenging in a good way, its really great in many ways but I really dislike with a passion that its not diverse majority is whites then asians, I grew up in diverse schools, full of whites,hispanics,asians, pacific islanders,blacks,native indians,and other races/cultures, I believe diversity is important in a teenagers life because it helps them learn about different people, to accept others with their differences, and shows them how different but the same everyone truely is, I Honestly feel like I dont fit in at all, I find that other students judge quickly , I dont like how they run out of lunch, how the gym is extremely small, they dont have class sets of books so we have to bring our books to and from school everyday, alot of books and weight, classes have to many students, some dont even have seats
--Submitted by a student

My Son graduated from Los Alamitos in 2010. He did have some speical needs and Los Al was nothing short of amazing. He entered the school his freshman year with a .85 GPA, His Junior and Senior year he was maintaing a 3.0 and better with no problem. He graduated with a 3.5 and earned the Senior Medalion Award for most impoved GPA over the 4 years her was there. He still keeps in contact with some of his teachers. He's moved on to Cerritos College and is doing well. This is the best school around! I'm now putting my oldest Step-Son though Los Al and I know he'll have the same great experience!
--Submitted by a parent

I'm on my second child at LAHS and have to say it's a very fine public HS. It is big and lacks some facilities (track, old gym, tiny tots sized pool) but who cares when the counselors, teachers, coaches are easily accessible and care. There are a lot of clubs, sports, activities for a teen to get involved in if they want to. It is very competitive, so your kid has to keep up in most classes (2-3 hours daily homework) but there are no racial issues, gangstas, beat downs, etc. Of course if you call diversity White and Asian then this is up your ally, because unfortunately the only blacks there seem to be athletes. Mostly its been a very good experiece for both my kids.
--Submitted by Tom, a parent

Los Al is a great school! My son will be a senior next year and his high school experience has been great. He has many friends and says he will miss this school after graduation. The teachers have been wonderful and my son's counselor has been fabulous with helping him prepare for college. We have been very pleased with the elementary and middle school in the district as well.
--Submitted by a parent

Los Alamitos High School is an amazing school. It surpasses in pretty much all aspects and has talented students. I had to move to another part of California and so could not graduate from Los Al, and it definitely does not compare to Los Al. Appreciate the ethnic diversity, academically, musically, and athletically gifted students, and wonderful teachers because you don't find many schools that offer this anywhere else. As for the people who state that they did not feel very welcomed when they moved into the area, I must say from personal experience that every school is like that, and Los Al would be the least to do so. Once a Griffin, always a Griffin.
--Submitted by a student

This is a large high school that was designed for a maximum of about 2,600 to 2,800. Currently it is over 3,500 and that creates problems such as large class sizes, and smaller percentage of the student body can make a sports team, or cheer etc. The school started taking out of school district students to get more federal money but it has not been able to add teachers or classrooms. Students need to be involved in a sport or activity or they can end up feeling like a number. There is a drug problem with drugs being sold on campus but the school is aware of it and doing what it can but the parental support/involvment varies. Some parents are merely defensive about this. There are of course good students and parents but like any large school there are some you probably don't want your child hanging around.
--Submitted by a parent

I find the constant criticism of 'cliques' beyond annoying. My child moves from several 'cliques', if you will, daily from his friends in sports, to friends in Jazz Band and other musical groups, to those involved in ASB and Honors/AP programs and beyond. You get back what you put into it. If you chose to label yourself and others and not make the effort to become involved its easy to blame others and not look at the non-participant. When we experienced issues with a teacher, the counsel stepped in and helped when all avenues were exhausted - without any finger pointing. Open yourself up and you receive a wonderful experience - stayed closed off and negative and you reap what you sow.
--Submitted by a parent

After a very positive experience with the elementary and middle schools in Los Al, I am very disappointed with my child's experince in high school. There are several teachers overseeing important core curriculum classes that simply need to retire. Too old to effectively interface with today's youth and not motivated to do more than the minimum. Like most Los Angeles Unified High Schools the focus is on students that are getting D's and F's and not on maximizing the potential of each child. Los Al High is an example of the why private schools have a reason for existence- to make each child fulfill their true potential opposed to passing as many students as possible. Boo Los Al!
--Submitted by a parent

i graduated from Los Al in 2007. academically it is ranked on e of the top 10 high schools in the county, which is very good considerigng we also have the most students. many reviews have stated they lack in the underachieving student. i disagree becasue i was one. the only reason why i graduated was because the counselors speak with you if you are struggling and they gave me the little push i needed to graduate. There are all sorts of Cliqs but it is pretty much black and white. you are either in the 'in' croud or not. but everyone finds their nich. like other OC scools, there are a good amount of wealthy kids coming from Rossmoor and Seal Beach. but with Wealthy areas are also some Drug issues. it's not a concern for most students though. for a public school, it's pretty good...
--Submitted by a student