Octorara Area High School

With Octorara, students get what they put into it. If students strive to do well, they will do well. Most teachers are very knowledgeable, and they go out of their ways to help students. Students who want to challenge themselves can choose from a wide variety of AP and honor classes that are very challenging and taught by great teachers. Octorara has extremely gifted students in high classes, but it also has lazy students who do not care about school in low classes. Octorara should not be judged on the performance of people who do not care about school; it should be judged based on the performance of people who actually care. Octorara also has great extracurricular programs. The Model United Nations Team is excellent, and students on the team travel to conferences at Yale, George Washington University, and the United Nations Building in New York. Octorara is a great school, and students get what they put into it. Octorara prepares students well for college and careers, and overall, it is a great school.
--Submitted by a student

Our son graduated from this school and he did great! There were some issues at first with Bullying but the school handled it very well and nipped it in the bud as soon as it happened and he had no more problems. He was struggling prior to entering the High School with academics as well as friendships. When he started going to this school he definitely came out of his shell, he made lots of friends and was honor roll/high honor roll almost every marking period. I can only hope that when our girls enter this school they will do just as well!
--Submitted by a parent

Octorara has a lot to offer...if you have the drive to take advantage of it. There aren't many sports necessarily, but they're open to whoever is willing. The same goes for the clubs. As far as academics go, there are some very able teachers who are willing to help any student who asks. The problem that I have seen is that many kids just don't ask. I suppose that they were told in middle school that they were smart, and they decide that that should eliminate the need for hard work. In recent years, some of our graduates have left to attend very prestigious colleges, including several Ivies. If you are willing to find and take advantage of the opportunities Octorara offers, I believe that you can compete with a students from other high schools.
--Submitted by a student

My daughter is in 4th grade and this is the second year she has complained that school was too easy. If a nine-year-old is asking to move to another school where she doesn't know anyone, then I believe the claims to the ineffectiveness of this school in early grades for regular students is probably true. Flip side, my 12 year old benefits from Title 1 programs, so if you have special needs, then its 'OK'. Otherwise, move them.
--Submitted by a parent

This is an expensive school district and isn't worth it. The Superintendent doesn't support the district by living in it and makes poor decisions. The athletics are poorly managed and coached. The math department has been the same for years and warrents extra math to compete in first year college. Certainly not worth the taxes.
--Submitted by a parent

The school district is very expensive and the overall quality of the school district is low. It scored twice the state average in the lowest performing level on the standardized state tests. It has the lowest standardized test scores in the county.
--Submitted by a parent

I am a graduate of Octorara High School and proud to say so. Throughout my high school career I was able to find enough challenge in and out of the classroom to keep my mind and body occupied and growing. My time at Octorara prepared me well for the rigors of Penn State engineering as well as solidly grounding me for any challenge to come my way. I was the captain of the academic team as well as a district caliber athlete in track and field. I can honestly say that this is a perfectly sized and staffed school to encourage anyone to acheive their goals, whether it be of the vocational or academic persuasion. Probably my favorite thing about octorara is that the school is a community, with friendships rooted in different aspects of the school. There are no football gods, there are no band nerds, just friends.
--Submitted by Evan Hughes, a former student

The school is great for 'young adults'. There is also a wide variety of classes and extra activities. Students work very hard to support school spirit. A great 'small town' school. Class of 2005 = 170 graduates.
--Submitted by Holly, a former student

This school district is very well rounded for extracurricular activities, most of the academic areas are okay, however, the math department leaves very much to desire. In the years that we have been involved in the district unless your a student that excels in the area of math your are destined to be a problem child who is labeled as an under acheiver. Sad because some children do not have the ability to grasp this subject without a little extra push. The child does very well in other area but not so well in this area but that is overlooked.
--Submitted by a parent