Ankeny High School

District needs to get a grip on attitude, politics and social status. Mindset of the best district has gone way overboard here. The students of social status, athletics and money have a free pass to not follow the rules, bully other students and basically get away with everything. While the students of less means are picked on continually. High school administration is too busy to make a safer and comfortable environment for learning. Way overcrowded and cater to the social status of parents and students. We have been here for 5 years and have come from other districts outside the state. I have been highly involved in volunteering at school and association with teachers and principals through entire student career of my children and am truly appalled. The High school principal has been the worse with ALL my interactions with her. With overcrowding, attitudes of administration and the way my children feel uncomfortable on a daily basis we are leaving the district. Kids need to feel safe, comfortable and looked upon with dignity and respect as an individual. How are they to better learn otherwise?
--Submitted by a parent

the ankeny school district I feel is a very crowded school district and I don't like it. The people there are rude and act like they are better than everyone else.
--Submitted by a parent

Great opportunities at this school! I've had one child graduate from Ankeny High School and have 2 that are currently seniors. They have all had wonderful experiences - with academics and athletics. As a parent of 3 going to college at basically the same time, the partnership with Des Moines Area Community College has been super! They will have earned at least 78 credits between the 3 of them for NO COST to us! I think that is awesome!!
--Submitted by a parent

We have one of the best High Schools around. We are rated in the top 10 in the nation.
--Submitted by a parent

Great school. Size is getting out of hand but they just need to add on and not build two high schools. This would ruin athletics at Ankeny, and all the great things that are going on at the school. Being a former student I know that all the things there are going well and don't fix something that isn't broken. But they definitely needs to add on, no big deal.

It's okay...it's REALLY crowded. But the extra curriculars are awesome and the teachers are really nice. We are pretty much the best at everything, and I've really enjoyed my time here. There are some drug and pregnancy problems, but you get that everywhere. Overall, this school is pretty good. The teachers are great for advanced learning, and they cater to the studen't needs. We are very good at pretty much all the sports and activities, and we win everything. A great school. The only drawback is the Portables, age, and the crowds. They are building another school, so look into that if you can.
--Submitted by a student

Ankeny is a great district! Teachers are great and above the norm. They will go out of their way to help students in their personal lives as well as their academic success. The only thing lacking is the lack of quality of the building.
--Submitted by a student

as a current student at ankeny I can say first hand that it is an above average school. there are many advanced courses to choose from that can earn you college credit at most if not all the Iowa colleges. there are also many dual credit classes with DMACC which is very close to the school. our athletic teams are also very good and have won many titles through the years. our drama department is also above average and has been invited to go Scotland in recent years. I really have no complaints about the school except for the size. there are currently over 500 students in my graduating class and the halls can be a bit crowed. however I think that all the teachers here do their best to get to know their students and size is not a huge issue
--Submitted by a student

Ankeny is your typical midwestern great school. As a student going there i can say it is a white school. I can count on my hand the number of minorities, but it's not a problem. Although football is of course and obsession like more schools our Girls athletics are Outstanding and have won many championships. The teachers are mostly all well liked and it you can really tell, when college is on break on our halls are flooded with former students coming to say hi to all their teachers. Some people hate us but it's a good school once ya come!
--Submitted by a student

After reading the few reviews of Ankeny I decided to give my own since I went to school there and my children did also for a few years until we moved. Minority issues? I don't know about that. It's a mainly white school but that just reflects the population. My class was 345 and we probably had 8 to 10 minorities. There were no issues related to race, etc. As for gifted students, Ankeny's programs are outstanding. Most teachers are supportive; in every school you are going to have teachers with their own 'issues.' That's called life. The Ankeny school system is great; the only issue I've ever had a problem with was sports. If you're not really really good at your sport, forget about participating. So there are kids that can get a little lost in the school system because of its size. I say build two high schools!
--Submitted by a former student