Horizon Prep

Horizon Prep has been a wonderful, Christ centered and academically strong choice for both of our kids. We have been at the school for over 9 years, and it continues to improve each year. The teachers are all degreed (many have Masters) and they truly care about each student. The Headmaster, Dr. K, is a very capable leader and has a strong leadership team surrounding him. With the High School opening this next year we are looking forward to staying at HP through 12th grade. What you see is what you get, a community based around Scripture that loves, nurtures and develops our kids to reach their full potential.
—Submitted by a parent

We have an 8th Grader who has been here since Preschool, Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st - 8th Grade. (11 wonderful years!) Every single day has been a blessing. The kids, the teachers, the staff, the families, the activities, the sports, the new campus, the loving environment, the Christian focus, and the education have all been outstanding. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who is even remotely considering Horizon Prep. You will be thrilled with the growth and development of the most important person in your life. Confident that you did the very best you could to develop them academically, spiritually, emotionally, athletically and socially into a fine young person. I hear it all the time from families who are there how happy they are, and from those who graduate, how much they miss the special place that Horizon is. Don't take my word for it, ask my 8th Grader who is now 14 (and teenagers don't like anything...) I ask all the time: "How do you rate your school from 1 to 10?" The answer is always: "10 out of 10!"
—Submitted by a parent

Both of our kids graduated from Middle School from Horizon Prep Rancho Santa Fe. Our kids are exceling in High School and are well prepared for college as a result of the terrific education and mentoring they received. Reading the reviews I find it troubling that a small handful of dissatisfied parents have decided to vent their frustration by trying to damage the reputation of a terrific school and highly trained, capable on loving educators. I strongly recommend Horizon Prep to parents who want what is best for their children.
—Submitted by a parent

My kids have been at Horizon Prep since pre-school. One graduated a year ago and is now in High School, the other is entering Middle School at HP. One of my children is accelerated academically and the other has several learning disabilities. BOTH of my kid's learning needs have been met by the accomplished teaching staff at HP. Even more importantly, both of my children love to learn and feel successful as students. With Christ at the center of the school, the kids are taught moral foundations that are biblically based and encouraged to take these foundations out into the world. The Head Master at HP is a tremendous leader who cares about his students and their families. I have always found the Administration at HP to be accessible and open to feedback and discussion. They are truly invested in the academic success and happiness of each and every student. My husband and I have been exceedingly happy over the past 7 years with Horizon Prep.
—Submitted by a parent

Our children recently graduated from Horizon Prep and are now attending a local private high school. We are incredibly pleased with the way they were prepared to take on any class at the high school level with confidence and success. Horizon prepared them for the challenges of high school and we are thankful for the loving care both academically and spiritually the teachers provided. It was truly a wonderful experience!
—Submitted by a parent

We had our child here for pre-school and pre-k and had a good experience. However: BEWARE of the lower and middle schools as they are woefully behind in mathmatics, science and english studies. Further, there are regular incidents of bullying and spiritual denegration of younger/weaker students. They have a wonderful marketing program which promotes a classical Christian education, but from what we have seen, the students do not get a private school caliber education and are certainly not grounded in Christian kindness and love.
—Submitted by a parent

We had several children at this school & hoped we had found the best Christian school possible. It is a beautiful school, located in a prestigious area, but the heart of this school is ugly - filled with arrogance, incompetence and unprofessionalism. It is not a loving, caring Christian school as we were led to believe. Parents and teachers are afraid to speak the truth. If you look past the pretty campus, expensive catering & massive marketing campaign, what you see is a school that is anything but Christian. Bullying is a major problem in many grades & neither the teachers or administration are prepared/willing to address the problem. There is constant preferential treatment of teacher/staff children. The school cares little, if at all, about the parents/families. They provide no avenue or opportunity for parent input (no PTA or otherwise). Anyone who does advocate on behalf of their child or any issue is immediately disparaged both by teachers and the administration staff. The head pastor is NEVER present - on the campus, at chapel or otherwise. And the school campuses are not secure. This school is nothing it purports to be - very disappointing.
—Submitted by a parent

My sons have been at Horizon Prep for 10 years - from Preschool to Middle School!! I can't say enough good things about HP. My children have had challenges - as all children do - and they have been nurtured and instructed with care and concern from all their teachers. Horizon Prep is more than just a "great school" - it's a great FAMILY to be a part of!!
—Submitted by a parent

This is our family's second year at Horizon Prep, and we are VERY happy with the academic, spiritual, emotional, social, and athletic growth in our boys. I strongly recommend the school. Both my sons demonstrate excellent Iowa test scores (very top percentiles) but there's much more to HP than great standardized test scores. Repeatedly, I've witnessed teachers showing one-on-one help with my boys and other students. A personal example: My younger son's writing was so-so when he arrived last year. Before 2010-11 school year ended, he became a phenomenal writer! That happened because his teacher last year went out of her way to continuously help him. Many of the lessons I hear about on the car ride home are dynamic and creative. We are thrilled that our boys are learning Latin, Spanish, hands-on science, to highlight a few subject areas, and all with Christ as the foundation. The administration is very responsive to parent input, with numerous venues of open communication and opinion seeking. Because God is the priority, excellence is the expectation.
—Submitted by a parent

We have had three children here from Preschool to Elementary School, for the last five years. The experience has been wonderful. Horizon is very rigorous academically, and our children routinely score in the top percentile on the Iowa Tests. They all read far above grade level and love learning. More importantly, they feel loved and valued and look forward to coming to school. The teachers show a genuine interest and love of each child and their individual learning styles and personalities. We have really enjoyed the open and welcoming community of parents too. Sometimes we have to wait for a turn to volunteer, because so many parents sign up for everything. I can't say enough about the love our whole family has experienced at Horizon Prep. They have created something very special.
—Submitted by a parent

My children have been at horizon for 4 years now. I am so saddened to see the majority of these negative comments are regarding the preschool not the elementary or middle school. My son went to the preschool and I feel it is a totally different environment then the elementary school. The elementary school is amazing and the academics are more difficult than any other school we interviewed. We have been so please with our experience here at Horizon, we will never go back to public school again. I had my daughter at public school for one year, we were so disappointed in the lack of discipline that we had no choice but to look for a school that was more nurturing and loving that also had amazing academics. Horizon met all of our expectations and more. I guess that is why they say that Horizon is "the love bubble". It truely is. Thank you Horizon
—Submitted by a parent

My daughters have gone to this school since they were in preschool. My youngest is now in 8th grade. Although the school had its share of growing pains in the beginning, the overall experience has been phenomenal. Both of my children test in the top 3% of national standardized tests and are proficient in Spanish and Latin. Beyond the academics, my children have learned to be edifying and accepting of all types of people. They are gracious, articulate and well-spoken.
—Submitted by a parent

We wanted to so badly to believe this school was all it sold itself to be. They do a wonderful sales job & really make you believe you are in a special place. The truth is it is not so special once you're on the inside. Bullying - even in the prescool - is rampant. There is an inner circle of teachers and their own children at the school that get preferential treatment - and families have left because of it. The rules don't apply equally to everyone. If you try to to advocate anything on behalf of your child because they appear to listen to your thoughts/ideas/concerns & then whisper behind your back - you become an outcast. There's lots of praise in worship which gives the sense that there's a lot of love in this school, but when you peel back the first layer, the teachers & staff talk the talk but dont walk the walk. It's appalling & sad that a Christian school would facilitate an environment that so easily excludes others - students and parents. They are not truly providing a Christian program where kids feel safe and loved - but they sure do a good job of selling that & a whole lot more.
—Submitted by a parent

Something to take notice of is that the majority of these negative reviews were from 4-6 years ago, when the school was brand new! As a student at Horizon Prep (middle school) for a few years now, it definitely has been a great school. Yes there is the "cliqueiness" and occasional meanness/snobbiness (from students) that comes with being a private school in the middle of Rancho Santa Fe, but the teachers, staff, and majority of the students here have made it an enjoyable, Christ-centered experience. Teachers are always open to opinions from our parents, and really try to bond with us students. The academics here are also stellar, and the fact that Horizon Prep has been voted best private school in San Diego several years in a row clearly testifies to that!

My daughters have excelled at Horizon. My shy daughter was encouraged and surrounded by love and support while my go getter daughter was challenged and thrived.
—Submitted by a parent

It is a shame the rating for this school is statistically skewed. it appears anyone with "issues" have automatically rated it poorly...on this site, there are either 5 stars, or one star. Usually people "rate" something becausethey are moved by it. And, normally, most people are not motivated to say things are going smoothly. We have had an outstanding experience at Horizon. Our young boy came in with socialization issues, and with the focused and measured guidance from the staff, he has socialized wonderfully, for which we are blessed. I would advise anyone reading any of the early poor comments (most in 2006, and very similar in content) to take them with a grain of salt. Horizon Prep is a well established, highly reputable, and effective program offering a great curriculum and Christ-based ethos. Comparatively, the tuition is reasonable, for the services and quality recived. It is a great place!
—Submitted by a parent

We had our youngest here and she just excelled in the pre-k plus program. She entered The Nativity School kindergarten so over-prepared for their program that they had to order advanced phonics and reading books for her. We didn't remain at Nativity because they were academically behind the local schools. Our experience at Horizon was positive. Not so for The Nativity School unfortunately.
—Submitted by a parent

We have loved the challenging academics and the personal attention to our children's progress. Horizon Prep has met all of our educational goals for our kids and exceded our expections in their love and care for each child.
—Submitted by a parent

We love this school! Our new Headmaster, Dr. K. has made so many improvements. The elementary school is only 5 years old and every year gets better. Don't listen to anyone who has not been here the last two years. My kids are thriving here and they feel like they are valued by their peers and teachers.
—Submitted by a parent

Our children have been at Prep for two years and have grown both academically and spiritually. The small enviornment lends itself to individualized instruction. The families are so sweet and welcoming you will feel like you are at home. The children are kind and the teachers love these kids. My son did not like school until we came to Prep and now he can't wait to go to school. He has improved in every subject since coming over from another local private Christian school. You will love it here.
—Submitted by a parent