High Tech La School

17111 Victory Boulevard

School District

Los Angeles Unified
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:21
Type

charter

School Map for Los Angeles Unified School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by parent on August 21, 2024

This math teacher is terrible not teacher material Arno Garabet Babahekian an unsuccessful real estate salesperson turned Math teacher is the worst teacher many of my daughter’s friends with bad grades are on her class. He does not care at all and does not teach right I don’t know why he gets paid over 100k a year more than any one at school to teach nothing. Also the assistant principal Maral Rostami is the wifey not good working same school but nice person. He discriminates gives up on kids that do not know how to do the math problem and does not teach and expects student to do on own with no instruction. I do not recommend this school just because this issue and others I don’t want to mention here they are very selective on their favorite students here. Terrible!
Submitted by other on July 13, 2024

This school is going downhill!!!!! And by the way, the administration does nothing when it comes to bullying, SEXUAL ASSAULT, and hate crimes!! Do not send your child here if you want them to be miserable!!
Submitted by student on May 22, 2024

This school has decent education but your kid will not end up the happiest here lol better off at another school. More educational opportunities at other places too such as AP classes, extracurricular activities such as clubs, sports, and other things. Those are not offered at this schoolZ
Submitted by parent on February 22, 2024

This school is great. Strict but great. I noticed that bad reviews come from the students cause program is hard. Students really have to study and do homework. That’s what parents like but kids not so much. My two kids graduated from it and got accepted to all colleges they applied. They didn’t have problems in college. School got them prepared very very well for college. Awesome!!!
Submitted by student on October 02, 2023

This school used to be “high tech” because it was the only school that used tablets, now that this is the norm, it is just a normal school. There are many things about this school to give pros and cons. There is a lot of hate in this school, queer, POC, trans, people get discriminated by other students, and usually little punishment is given. There are no AP courses, no drama programs (as of recently), no sports, they dont provide extracurriculars other than their robotics team, that has been great in the past but no so much this past couple of years. They dont fund any art programs. The uniform is so strict, you get more punishment breaking the dress code than if you harass another student (i know from experience). The education is very high though, which is great, the freshman math honors class taught trigonometry. Some classes are very college like and that may be great for some kids. The type of kid that should go here are the intellectual overachievers, math/science driven people and mainly conservative kids; from their perspective this school may be great, But as an artistically inclined person, they dont have any art programs, there isn’t any variety in the students, it is mainly white kids and predominantly male, as well as there aren’t many i guess, just normal teenagers!! i have only seen about five kids who have developed a fashion sense, only send your kid here if they want to major in math, science, engineering, subjects, but aside from that, don’t send your child here.
Submitted by parent on June 09, 2020

EXCELLENT, PRO ACTIVE AND VERY HIGH TECH SCHOOL
Submitted by student on December 23, 2018

Eh whatever. It's just normal. I would bring your children (or yourself) to a normal high school.
Submitted by parent on June 06, 2018

High Tech High is nothing less than an amazing public school, first year of being here and definitely I feels that this school prepare you kids to thrive, is a hard work but worth it, they have great teachers, and I’m very grateful for the great support for each student. My son loves this school.
Submitted by parent on March 13, 2017

I am very thankful we found this school. It is tough, and a lot of ninth graders end up repeating ninth because they weren't prepared in middle school, but if you expect your child to go to graduate FROM COLLEGE, this is where they need to be. I have never seen one school with so many enthusiastic teachers versus those just putting in their years until retirement. The principal and vice principal really know teens and how to work with them. If your kid is not willing to put out the effort needed and just wants to skate through high school, don't send him here. It's not easy, but I believe the results will be worth it. The kids are taught leadership skills and how to work with and encourage each other and to be accountable for their actions.
Submitted by student on October 06, 2016

This is a great school. I have read the review myself and I can say for a fact, there are lies embedded in them. When some parents say that there is no art/music programs is a lie. We have a music teacher that teaches Guitar and as far I have been here, He has always taught guitar. It is true that we do not have a traditional sports team, but we have a robotics team. Team 4 Element Who have won many awards. If you can here to get an education about sports I feel as though you should have done more research about this school before enrolling your kids here. One very common misconception about this school is that this is a school ABOUT technology. This is false. I am simply going to relay what the principal and teachers told me on our first day. "This is a collage prep school that USES technology, we are not a technology school" This school does that very well. It prepares us for the future we will have. By having higher standards for us it makes us achieve more on a daily basis and not just do the minimal. People complain about when one kid does wrong the entire school is punished this is true but not on that scale. If litter and substantial amounts of trash are found the teachers can use the cameras to see who did it and punish the single grade level of that students. And what is that punishment? Detention on Saturday for one hour for that one student and no casual Friday for that grade level. Is that really that bad? Oh no you can't were your hello kitty sweater on one Friday of the year. Overall my experience here is and hopefully will still be great.
Submitted by parent on August 29, 2013

HTLA was the best high school environment for our son. It is a warm, caring environment where the teachers, staff and peers help each other to succeed. It is a challenging, collaborative environment where group projects and public speaking are a major part of the academic experience. Coming into high school, these areas were certainly challenging for our son but because of HTLA's collaborative curriculum, he is now confident and successful in these areas. They have a dedicated college counselor that begins communicating with the students in 9th grade. Her success in helping the students find a proper college and also merit/financial aid/ grants is astonishing. Our son just completed his first year of college and was extremely prepared. Not only was he accepted into great colleges including Berkeley, UCSD, UCI, UCDAVIS, Santa Clara, Pitzer, Occidental, Cal Poly San Luis, Colorado School of Mines, and several others, but he was also awarded merit aid for his academic achievements. All of his peers also were accepted into great schools and also received attractive financial offers. For those that want to really succeed here, all the resources are certainly provided!
Submitted by other on June 15, 2013

I am currently a student at HTLA going into 11th grade and have struggled for the past two years. First off the school most likely uses the same amount of technology with the same quality as majority of other high schools. The school's campus is small and appealing to the eye but there is not much going on. There is tons of homework that I've basically lost my social life although the work load is similar to what is to come in college it is just very stressful. Because of all the work it is harder to succeed. I believe if I were in an ordinary high school I would have gotten much better grades. Yes the school is very good at preparing kids for college but I feel like I could of gotten into a better college in another school. Honestly if your kid is not interested in robotics and engineering them don't send them here because there aren't many clubs and there are absolutely no sports. It is not a school for finding your self interests.
Submitted by student on October 05, 2012

Seeing that there are a lack of student reviews on here, I find this review appropriate. I can definitely say that this school has prepared me properly for college because of how the actual school is operated. The length of the classes reflect what a real college would have, which is about an hour and a half. There are no bells, which promotes students to arrive to class on time, and the teachers do care about their students. It is funny how other reviews say that the teachers do not care, but you have to go to them for help then they will give you more information than you need. This school is truly a college preparatory school because of how this school operates which has made college easier than high school.
Submitted by parent on March 02, 2012

It's funny that many of the parents love the school but the students don't. It's true that when a small group of students are to blame for something, the entire student body is held accountable. "Unfair!" they shout. But since this is primarily about whether kids have to wear a uniform on Fridays or not, it doesn't matter much to me, but obviously the kids care, and because of that, so should we. The technology is just pathetic for a school calling itself high tech high but they seem to be working to correct that. The support staff is amazing and helpful. A couple teachers should be let go - they bristle if you question them (the principal defends them to the death). The rest are quite good and even if they make mistakes, they own up to them and try hard - what else can you expect? No one is perfect. English, History, Math and Science all have phenomenal teachers. They need an art and music program very badly and it's unfortunate that they do not value the arts. It's a glaring omission. There is a real connection between math and music, but it's missing entirely here. Lastly, most of the kids leave school by senior year. Now THAT you should think about.
Submitted by parent on January 27, 2012

The school is only good if your student is highly academic. If they struggle at all, forget about Hi Tech. Teachers don't care unless a 504 is in place and they have to. And even at that they are not really supportive to parents. There is also no team sports or arts/ music programs available. Principal is probably the worst I have ever encountered. She lacks professional aptitude and compassion. My son won't be returning next year. Horrible experience.
Submitted by parent on September 27, 2011

My son is a senior at HTLA. I have never seen more brilliant teachers and caring staff. Not only will you have a top education in a small classroom environment...you get college advice EVERY year of your child's high school experience. Also, really DON'T let the name fool you. I think the English, and History classes are stellar. My son is getting scholarship already, and this is because we have such great college advisers on staff.
Submitted by parent on May 23, 2011

The excellent education my son received from High Tech High -L.A. has served him well as he enters his senior year at one of the top engineering schools in this country. It has been 3 years since he graduated from High Tech High, and I still talk to people about what a great start it gave him as he completes two degrees in both Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. He gained an incredible foundation and was served well by a staff of highly dedicated teachers. The principal is absolutely amazing and juggles the needs of each student with unique ability. I have found that complaints about the school come from students who haven't really applied themselves or figured out how to mine the unlimited resources that this school has to offer. I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity for my son's excellent educational experience at this school---and see in hindsight that it is given him enormous advantages in the years since he left.
Submitted by parent on May 23, 2011

Like others on this thread, I think this school is excellent but for a couple of teachers. Yes, that's the case at most schools, but it should be noted that a couple of the teachers (in the early & later grades) routinely fail to promptly post grades and pointedly single out students with snide remarks who inquire about such, thus creating a atmosphere where students fear addressing concerns with the teacher. In a small school environment such as HTLA, that is a serious issue that affects academic performance. The irony is obvious since the school places great emphasis on student responsibility yet certain teachers disdain it. It's unfortunate because these teachers, as one student notes on this thread, are not quality teachers and blame the students for failures that are, in fact, their own.
Submitted by parent on March 02, 2011

We couldn't be happier with this school. Amazing school building, supportive staff (& principal who listens to you), and many of the teachers are stellar. Every school has one or two teachers that don't fit, and this school is no exception -- but in all it was an amazing opportunity for our son and made ALL the difference in his high school education. Very small size worked well for us and it feels like a close community, and made it less intimidating for the students.
Submitted by student on November 20, 2010

I am currently a junior attending this school, and the only positive thing I can say is that the school looks nice. The teachers honestly don't care about the students, and drug use is very prevalent. The school has the worst technology program I have seen to date, and most of the computers are damaged. The faculty at the school punishes the entire student body for the actions of one or two students on a regular basis. The math depatment consists of teachers who shift the blame onto the class when everyone fails a test, rather than accepting responsibility and reteaching the subject. The science department has one good teacher, the rest have fail rates in the 40-50 percentile. The english department is actually very good, so if you plan on being an english teacher, the only job that class will help with, then please sign up. Otherwise, Please, don't attend this school. You will regret it.