Todd Beamer High School

I think this is a good school with teachers that will work with the students. A school is what you make it and if as a parent you are involved it's a win win situation.
—Submitted by a parent

My advice to all who aren't interested in their child being a cheerleader is to transfer from this school immediately. Certainly if you are expecting your child to either have a successful college experience or to gain some vocational skills that would allow them to earn a living wage. University of Washington places the graduates of this school in the lowest category.

I love Todd Beamer because of all our school spirit !
—Submitted by a parent

it has the best group work everyone is soo nice and we need the money(:
—Submitted by a parent

I graduated from todd beamer in 2008 from the math science health and fitness academy. if some one asked me if beamer is a good school to go to i would say YES! i loved it. the teachers are so great, they care about the students and their futures. want proof? a friend of mine knew no one that went to college and had no clue about financial aid for it. a teacher, not just the career service lady. this teacher met with my friend and his mom and helped him through EVERYTHING. i was also a cheerleader at beamer and the coach is great. i have also met many of the other coaches and they are really nice. the sports teams arent that great but the students and the coaches do their best. the academies are alright but not bad. its a great school and i'd recommend it.
—Submitted by a student

My children are the best evidence. My son, a 2008 graduate, had his choice of 7 merit scholarships. He attends the engineering school at the University of Portland and reports he is very well prepared for calculus, physics, philosophy and his other courses. My daughter, a 10th grader, splits her time between running on the Titan's winning cross country team and home work in her rigorous courses. She has a very strong relationship with her teachers and coaches, which contributes to her academic success. She took and passed the WASL as freshman.
—Submitted by a parent

I have had such a positive experience so far. My daughter has special needs that were not being met in a nearby district at all. Beamer and its staff were challenged by our needs in that my daughter does not qualify for IEP classes. She is in regular classes with accommodations. Her teachers communicate with me without giving me the impression that it is too much to do so. She is getting more help with work than she ever did from the other district right next to them. As for the academies, I think they are great. Yes, they socially lump the kids together, but the kids do that anyway. It keeps the jocks from picking on the nerds so to speak. They still have problems, but what public school doesn't.
—Submitted by a parent

I believe that Beamer is New and as new schools go, it has problems. When you attend Beamer, Don't expect to get the same kind of social treatment that you would expect at a traditinal High School. Beamer is broken down into four academys. Each academy has it's own identity, the problem is if you don't pick the academy that fits your personality, you have a problem, that is what I see. If you are not into sports, you would not enjoy being in the Math Science Health and Fitness Academy, not to say that you are not getting a good education. You Get that from each academy. What the differece between each is the social life.
—Submitted by a student

I am a ex-student from Beamer and I agree its in a bad neiborhood like the other highschools but go to Federal Way High and say this one is not safe. It is over crowded compared to when I started there and some teachers are over rated but the B&I principl changed my life and is continuing to do so, both in and out of school even after my not going there he is still a friend of mine and many of the teachers do get involved with each student maybe even too involved, but they have our best interests at heart.
—Submitted by a student

the teachers are not involved in the students, as with the administration. the student discipline system is amazingly horrible. a couple of teachers are doing what they should be doing, but the rest have either given up on the students or just don't care about the students. just themselves. I think the academies are just incredibly stupid. if you are in one academy you cannot take a any-other classes in the other academies. all academies have different classes.. so if you seem that you may want to go in a couple directions.... you cannot; because the school doesn't allow it. I highly recommend studying the academies before you send yourself or your children into this school. also the main focus is on sports and not academics.
—Submitted by a student

Not such a great school, this school is way over-rated, and not safe at all. This website needs to rethink their 9 out of 10 rating, because they are wrong.
—Submitted by a student

This school is great because the teachers are so involved with the students. They're not just like heres the work and say go ahead and do it they care about the students. After school sports are improving drastically almost all our sports made it to state and one took third and this year the soccer team has a great chance in state.
—Submitted by a student

horrible school, bad disipline system, overcrowded, pathetic sports and academics, and worst of all, the academys: lets split the school up into 4 different schools and limit the classes kids can take, for example, if i was in the math science academy, i couldnt take creative writing or drama because they are part of humanities and arts and if i joined that academy i couldnt take marketing or buisness math becuase they are in buisness and industry
—Submitted by a student

This school is a disaster for kids that are seeking to enter college or for kids that wish to find a vocation. Emphasis here seems to be on 'social interaction' not learning.
—Submitted by a parent

The academys are a waste of time and should be eliminated.
—Submitted by a student

This school has the lowest SAT scores in the district along with the lowest participation rates. Parents that are expecting their kids to attend competitive colleges might wish to look elsewhere.
—Submitted by a parent

Todd Beamer is a nice school with new facilities that allow students to learn at the hightest level possible. Though it is somewhat trial and error because it is only in its second year, there is a large amount of promising evidence.
—Submitted by a student

I am currently a Junior at Todd Beamer, I have been there two years now and from my firsthand experience of this school is great. I like it because it is indoor and fairly big. The teachers are great, and the students are respectable. I have been to some after school activites and there wasn't alot of school spirit. I think that is because we are a new school and we don't have any traditions. I believe that in ten to twenty yeas from now, this school will even better. Its a great learning environment. I am the graduating class of 2006.
—Submitted by a student

I have deep concern over whether this school has the ability to foster children who are disabled. The school did not take into consideration the amount of students that would be flooding this school. It is overcrowded and absurd to have small class sizes when the school is over 1400 kids. I would eat my eyes before sending my children to this school. Although, I might add that their speech and debate team is superb.
—Submitted by a parent

This is my first year at Beamer and so far I am deeply concerned. I see the potential that this school could provide and the people in leadership I have met I have liked so far. They have a great program to help put these kids on track for early graduation and getting a head start in their college choices, however, it is very difficult to make the system work for you because of how over-crowded the school is. This is not just a nuisance but a real problem in the success of the school and its students. I will have a total of 3 students attending Todd Beamer High and am hoping that the system can iron out its wrinkles in time to help these students succeed!
—Submitted by a parent