San Clemente High School

700 Avenida Pico

School District

Capistrano Unified
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:26
Type

public

School Map for Capistrano 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 student on August 26, 2020

Southern Orange County Coastal Feel. You'll survive if you are very careful about what your appearance is, your friends, etc.
Submitted by parent on February 26, 2020

Overall my experience with office staff and administration has been very Negative. Teachers are great, but I read another review about the girls soccer coaching staff which I strongly agree with. I brought my concern to the Athletic Director and he deferred to the coaching staff. The coaching leadership is comprised of evaluators, not coaches. I don't see true investment in the development of the character these young ladies. Girls were getting seriously injured in practice scrimmages, and coaches did nothing to discourage the behavior. There are 'favorites' and girls with potential, yearning for a coach, get stepped on, made to feel less than, and pushed out. These are girls that made the team. The amount of great girls that leave the program year of year is alarming but the Athletic director and administration does nothing. San Clemente used to have a nationally ranked, amazing team. It continues to deteriorate year over year, and concerned parents are discouraged from speaking out. In fact they generally feel that if they advocate for the daughter, their daughter will be punished. It's a very discouraging situation.
Submitted by student on September 16, 2019

I love my school. I always feel like I have someone to talk to if I need help. Definitely 10/10
Submitted by parent on April 25, 2019

I had one daughter graduate last year, with a terrible experience and hating going to school everyday. Teachers are mean she said, and kids are very egotistical, and drugs are definetely a big problem. Now, I have a freshman there, who said she will not go back to the school next year, for the same reasons. I Also, would not recommend any girl to play for the girls soccer program. The coaches are not leaders, they act like the high school students with there favorites getting play time and encourage varsity players to haze the freshman and play rough with them.
Submitted by student on January 10, 2019

Horrible. It feels like a 2nd grader set up this school. The entire system is bad.
Submitted by parent on September 16, 2017

Great school! Coming from a small private school to a large public school I was a little worried. I am so impressed with how kind the students are with new students to make them feel welcomed. The staff has been wonderful!
Submitted by student on January 13, 2017

It's my junior year and I haven't had a single bad experience at this high school. I'm on the waterpolo team and it's a great bond that I share with all of my teammates. I couldn't imagine going to any other school. One town one team!
Submitted by other on November 12, 2016

I graduated from SCHS but was lucky enough to start my freshman year at an excellent high school prior to moving to San Clemente. Most of SCHS graduates don't even get their college degree. There is no push from the school to entice these kids to pursue college. Very little, if any, academic advising for a path to a university. As well as no push to get these kids to aim for the best grades. The culture here is too laid back. Kids are quitting core classes just because they feel like it, not understanding how this will set them back if they do try to move on to college. Little to no career days. It's a high school, so your kids can check that box, but beyond that this establishment needs a major overhaul. These kids won't be exposed to much here.
Submitted by parent on April 23, 2016

Just teachers that don't care. Distracted by personal projects, watched a lot of movies even in AP classes.
Submitted by parent on April 07, 2015

We moved to San Clemente from NJ (August 2014) and I had many concerns about sending our son to SCHS his freshman year. The large number of students and campus in need of a face lift was quite intimidating. Not to mention we were new to the area and my son can be quite shy. We arrived the week of registration and though the office staff were quite stressed and not friendly they were efficient. We pushed our son to find a few clubs he would enjoy. He audtioned for the choir, signed up for drama, and joined a card club. The staff and students involved in drama and vocal arts were amazing and welcoming. He truly found a home away from home with these groups at SCHS. The school is large but there truly is something for everyone. We have enjoyed watching our son grow socially and emotionally this year. There are some great kids who attend this school and so far the staff have been wonderful.
Submitted by parent on January 19, 2015

Not a great HS at all. Needs upgrading and complete overhaul. Overcrowded with many issues.
Submitted by other on August 14, 2014

Overall a terrible school. No conditions for 3000 students;maybe 1500 max! Not even enough bathrooms. All my time at this school was wasted in absurdly long bathroom lines to wait for disgusting and leaking toilets barely fit for use. Most cafeteria food sucks and lack of resources for all these people. The majority of my teachers were nonchalant and uninspiring, assigning copious amounts of busy work. Also, most people at this school are very cliquey, closed-off and rude. Couldn't be happier to get out of this hell hole.
Submitted by parent on March 16, 2014

The last review should have 5 stars across the board. Please fix. Hopefully someone at Great Schools can fix it. If read you will notice the review does not match the star rating.
Submitted by parent on August 24, 2013

Because our family has had such a positive experience at SCHS, I wanted to submit this review. Our goal for high school for our kids was for them to get the education and experience to be successful in college and in their futures. SCHS has done this. The teachers, school staff and their advisors in particular have all been great. Being on a campus with 3000 students at first was intimidating, but I really feel its a great experience to prepare for college, and once the kids get familiar with the campus, they were fine. I've heard that people say drugs and alcohol use is prevalent at SCHS, but from talking to friends and family, it's prevalent at most high schools across the country. As parents it's our responsibility to know what our kids are doing and address that with them.
Submitted by other on June 21, 2013

I graduated from San Clemente High School ("SCHS") in 2007 and then attended UCLA. I would argue that there are two "tracks," and implicitly two different schools, within SCHS: honors/AP/IB, and everything else. I did the former of the two, so my experience and comments are limited therein. I had an excellent experience at SCHS, particularly in the International Baccalaureate program where deeper thinking, not simply rote learning, was encouraged. Students in the honors/AP/IB track generally know the same kids for four years, and that fosters both a sense of community and one of hard competition (net positive). Nearly every teacher has at least a masters degree in their subject (again in the honors/AP/IB route) and most were outstanding instructors, not just knowledge stores. Students rarely lack extracurricular activity options (orchestra, band, multitudes of sports, dance, theater, etc.) and many of those are nationally and regionally ranked and well-respected. I strongly recommend taking any classes from Kathleen Sigafoos, Patrick Harris, Lisa Kerr, Jeff Kolasa, Jennifer Morris, Rob O'Rear, Allison Schick, Rob Urquidi, Pat Wilsey, and Duncan Wilson.
Submitted by student on May 30, 2013

SCHS is a terrible school! The school is wayy over croweded, the teachers here dont care,very low bugets to do anything and it has a serious drug problem!
Submitted by parent on February 03, 2013

SCHS has been a great school for my daughter, who is currently a junior. They offer a variety of classes that other schools may not. From fashion to surfing classes, there are many options for kids who want to explore the courses that may very well turn out to be professions for them one day. As for the drug issue, there are many kids who are involved with it, however, in my opinion it seems more like a county wide problem rather than a school problem. We are a military family and not exactly in the same financial bracket as many of the other parents. I have noticed that much of the problem lies with parents who are so busy making money that they tend to ignore the needs of their kids. Some of these kids are given as much as 6,000 a month to do as they please! Eventually they are going to turn to drugs without parental support and free spending. My daughter has a good head on her shoulders and we don't have that kind of money so she has stayed on the right course. If you stay involved in your kids lives, most likely you will not have an issue.
Submitted by student on January 03, 2013

I attended this school in 2012, and the school may seem nice at a glance. However, there is a SERIOUS drug problem and students can often be found engaging in extremely inappropriate PDA everywhere. Bullying is extremely common, but campus is generally well-maintained . There is an over-emphasis on sports over academics, as well as a low budget and lack of discipline.