Ridgefield High School

700 North Salem Road

School District

Ridgefield
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:11
Type

public

School Map for Ridgefield 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 May 04, 2023

RHS gets good ratings because the majority of the students come from educated parents who make sure they do well. There are some great teachers who actually care and respect their students and have truly made a difference for students - so my apologies to those teachers! However, there are too many ineffective teachers who have limited knowledge of learning differences/disabilities and recognizing mental health issues. Some teachers seem overwhelmed with their own issues which impacts their abilities to teach and focus on the students needs. There is also a lot of discrepancy between teachers and grading. The biggest issue is the administration - the principal is more concerned about his job and checking all the boxes than the individual students. The school claims to be open to student and parent input but in reality only wants to hear what they are doing well. When there are issues with bullying or emotional abuse they only do what they need to legally and do not show any regard for the students impacted. They focus on looking good and saying the right things while there are many students who needs are not being met. I find it extremely frustrating when the adults working within the school are contributing to the declining mental health and stress of the students.
Submitted by other on August 14, 2021

We moved to Ridgefield for its excellent school system. Our experience here exceeded our initial expectations by a substantial amount. In short, the Ridgefield School System prepared our 4 children for the real world. The excellent education they received along with the numerous after school enrichment and athletic programs the Town offers helped to shape their character & ensure they were ready for their next steps in life. All of our children were accepted into their university of choice and received sizable scholarships for what they had accomplished in high school. In particular, they learned quite a lot and were challenged to think and solve problems in their advanced placement/college level classes. For those who find all of this rather daunting, please understand one of our children initially had learning difficulties in elementary school. However, his teachers identified the issue early and worked with him diligently so as to insure he would be fully successful in MS and HS. (The teachers at all levels of the school system were fully invested in their students and would provide extra help at any time.) Since college all 4 of our children have also gone onto Graduate School and now hold advanced degrees. Our children developed many friendships from both school and the many programs in which they participated. Many of these friendships still exist to this day. My wife and I would say that anyone who believes the Ridgefield School System is anything less than excellent should really question their efforts to become involved.
Submitted by other on July 12, 2016

I graduated from Ridgefield High School around 7 years ago and the experience that had during my time there was wonderful. The faculty and staff members were such an important part of my experience there as they were so helpful and pushed me to become a better, smarter person.
Submitted by parent on February 20, 2015

Over 12 years ago we moved to Ridgefield because of the reputation of the schools. Our three kids attended elementary, middle and some high school here. We moved recently to another part of the country and have discoverers that the education in ridgefield schools are lacking in every subject but especially math. The reputation at our kids' current schools is that CT students aren't as competitive and CT education is not rigorous. From first hand experience I would agree. Our kids have to work so much harder to catch up. Another problem with Ridgefield schools is the lack of after school clubs and teams, both academic and sports. At our current schools there are a lot of opportunity in the middle schools to compete in science Olympiad, math teams, debate teams, social clubs, or school sports teams. These opportunities foster better relationships between the students and the students and teachers. Ridgefield has a terrible social environment and I believe this is one of the reasons. If I had to move to this area I would put my kids in private schools or look at Westchester NY schools. CT schools in general aren't very good. Glad we moved!
Submitted by other on January 01, 2015

I am in 8th grade and my parents and I are planning to move in summer. It is an outstanding school with amazing test scores but the school troubles me. I am not gifted and have average grades. I have a's and b's and one c. I am worried that this school is going to be much difficult and i wouldn't get good grades in order to get into a good college
Submitted by teacher on February 05, 2014

As a teacher, i have a unique insiders view of what this school is about. Yes, the test scores are amazing, and if your are a superstar, as many of our students are, you will do well here. If you are an average student, or a student with learning disabilities, then your experience is going to be completely different. Our faculty is encouraged to spend most of our time and curriculum to nurture the best and the brightest. You will not find this in any written policy, but it is the RHS school culture to nurture the gifted and let the other students sink or swim. I find this practice abhorrent, but we, as teachers, must play by the administrations rules. Students with LD are generally written off, and are most definaitely NOT encouraged by their counselors or other staff members. Again, if you are academically gifted, as most students here are, you are fine, but if you are not, be prepared to face some stiff competition will little to no support from the administration. There are some exceptions, of course, and there are some caring teachers who will go that extra mile, but believe me, that is the exception. So, great school for the gifted not so great for the average student
Submitted by parent on May 23, 2013

The school is stunning, with immaculate test scores and professionalism. The students are all eager, intellectual, and sophisticated. Very impressed with the scores, grades, colleges attended by graduates, and staff. Outstanding.