Smithson Valley High School

Quality of teachers very inconsistent. Many teachers rely way to heavily on handouts. Extremely clickish. Low student engagement.
—Submitted by a parent

i graduated from this school in 2010 and it was a great school til now....the students dont care anymore the teachers let them do whatever they wanna do and the new principal. i mean i loved going there everyone was so nice and didnt care but now everyone is spoiled and they get what they want these kids are so spoiled i cant believe it.....but i love this school and the teachers are great!
—Submitted by a student

This teacher from the previous post obviously has no idea what an iron fist is, my children moved from a school with a dress code that required shirt tucked in, belt, no skirts or shorts. My girls were thrilled with being able to dress any respectable fashion; in addition, it allows teachers and principals to focus on what is important, not a wardrobe. In their old school a simple toss of something at lunch would require suspension because of a scare of a food fight, this principal is out at lunch talking to our children and is not over reacting to simple teen gestures. Just because he ask more from the teachers is not a reason to post a negative comment about the school, SV is an amazing school!!! We moved here with 3 children starting anew and I found supportive faulty, staff and student body!! It started slowly, teachers were slow to respond to emails unless the principal was cc'd but eventually his "iron fist" showed some some changes with all the teachers. I respect structure, this is the the exact structure my children need! Sorry you bitter teacher!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
—Submitted by a parent

The principal has obviously never been in a school where the kids are great. There is not a problem and he rules with an iron fist. The teachers, faculty, and staff all complain about him and he has turned the school into a fear based learning environment. Besides the fact that he is a bad principal, %50 of the Senior class is failing for the year.
—Submitted by a teacher

every one at this school is spoiled and all they care about is what brands there wearing and how big there truck is. Dont go here
—Submitted by a student

I have one who graduated last year,one who is a Senior this year,and one who is a Freshman......all of them love the school....when we retired from the military,we choose to live in SV country....traffic into SA and all....it's still a 'country' type school,good family and school values,exceptional support from the community and parents,and while it has its share of problems,I believe they still lag behind on the overall issues most schools this size face...and thats a good thing.'it takes a village' has meaning here,as do God ,Country and the Flag...:)
—Submitted by a parent

I was struggling in school, and a few teachers worked with me and created a safe environment where I felt successful. My parents and I had several ridiculous conferences with administration to discuss the teachers that would not work with me. The teachers wouldn't listen to what I needed and administration wouldn't listen to my parents. All they would say is they had confidence in their teachers. The meeting would be twisted away from the true situation and blame was put on me and my parents. I thought at those meetings both sides needed to work on the problem. I would go to another school, but we can't afford it. If you have experienced horrible teachers, rate them at ratemyteacher.com. Maybe administration will listen to the students and parents this way and fire the incompetent teachers. Smithson Valley should have higher expectations. All their efforts seem to be toward sports.
—Submitted by a student

I think this school is very uptight and well kept. It also has very nice and interesting teachers , they will always help you when you need something. The rules are strict here so you have to follow them well.
—Submitted by a student

This is the best school i have ever attended. All the teachers and students are both great. The clubs and athletics programs can't get any better. KEEP GOING SVHS!
—Submitted by a student

Our kids came from a small public school in Europe, and although change is tough for any kids- they settled right in within the first few weeks. There really is something for everyone. My child participates in Navy JROTC and loves every minute of it. Even as massive as the school is, the councilors sat down with us as a family to help plan my son's future curriculum.
—Submitted by a parent

The school has good quality with mostly well behaved learning students.
—Submitted by a student

Excellent, Excellent, Excellent! We could not ask for more. My child is taking dual credit courses as a Sophomore and is prepared for college already. There is a club or group for everyone. We moved here from a larger school district in San Antonio and did not know that this level of personal attention was available.
—Submitted by a parent

When I first got here, I was overwhelmed my the massiveness of the school. But now, I realize that that is a very good thing! There are literally dozens of clubs; there's something for everyone! School spirit is high and there's plenty of opportunities to meet new people.
—Submitted by a student

Has done an excellent job with all my children.
—Submitted by a parent

This school is the best school I have been to in my life. KEEP GOING STRONG
—Submitted by a student

The School is great, however class sizes for the 2007-2008 year are horrible. All of my son's classes are filled or over crowded. .
—Submitted by a parent

I'm a parent of a child at SVHS and our experience has been good. My son was new to the area but was quickly accepted and made some good friends. The counselors and teachers have been very helpful in guiding our son towards advanced classes and scholarship opportunities.My job takes me into many area high schools. Kids are similar everywere they are looking for problems they can find them. Keep them involved in activities and they stay busy. SVHS is a great place for this. The community is very involved here and there is a lot of school pride. The students have better chances to succeed here than many other schools because of this positive atmosphere and community involvement.This school sits out in the country and has a small town feel, it also has a beautiful campus and better than avg security. What a great high school!
—Submitted by Sean O'Neal, a parent

This school is not for everyone, and I encourage all parents to listen to their children if the complaints about SVHS (or any school for that matter) become too frequent. Children need to be comfortable in their surroundings to excel.
—Submitted by a former student

I have a son attending SVHS and is in football. My experience, the coaches only care about winning and not the health of the players. The coaches also could care less about academics. They only care if the student makes a 70 to play. Some of the teachers, mainly coach teachers dont do their work when it comes to keeping up with the parent portal. You have to basicly scold them only after trying to be nice to make them to do their Job.. The students are also taught a lesson that you dont have to study b/c you will have several chances to make up the work to get a passing grade. Hello! They will not be able to do that in college...Then again all this school cares about is Football. Well thank goodness my son is in football(ya right!)
—Submitted by a parent

As a teacher although I don't work at Smithson Valley and my children only attend school there, I find the school as far as athletics no different than any other school in Texas, football seems the main focus. Having taught school in several other states North Carolina included I disagree with some of the comments made about the school by some of the parents on this site(who fail to sign their name). For the most part my kids feel welcomed in athletics as well as in their classes. I do feel there isn't enough focus on some of the classes and also that in the area of Math some of , or at least one of the teachers needs to be replaced with someone who knows how to address parents in a professional manner as well as teach to his students. When students do better teaching themselves from the book?
—Submitted by a parent