Independence High School

1776 Edal Park Dr.

School District

East Side Union High
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:23
Type

public

School Map for East Side Union High 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 October 17, 2023

Teachers are way too lazy this year with taking attendance (2023). This is bad because during this year, a new rule thing passed down to the school which is basically way way way more strict on being late and absent. Having too much 3 tardies = 1 absent and if you have enough absences, then you can't go to school anymore. Teachers just gave up taking attendance you have to show up to class in like 2 mins or else you'll risk getting marked absent. Like come on it's my last year here.
Submitted by parent on April 20, 2023

Great support, lots of different classes to take, support low income family.
Submitted by student on January 15, 2023

If you are a parent that has a kid that aspires to go into a good university or a parent wanting to get their child into the right path in life, Independence is not it. There have been multiple times I have been asked if I wanted to vape with people or do morally incorrect things. There were once 4 restrooms on campus but now only have 2 in which are always dirty or covered with students vaping. The school clubs have little to no participation and even the largest club, UNICEF, have a max of 30 students that show up to their meetings whom a majority are friends of their leadership team. I am currently taking 5 AP classes and 3/5 of my teachers lack the ability to teach an AP class. From poor grading structure, leading to majority of the class having low grades or very inflated grades, basic understanding of the material and unable to teach in a more complex way, and does not prepare for the AP exams well enough, leading to failing the exam of performing poorly. Parents, if you were thinking about sending your child to attend this school, please take the things I stated into consideration. There is a reason why the school is rated like this.
Submitted by parent on May 07, 2022

My son graduated from Independence High in 2010 then went to UC. He graduated from medical school years ago and is a physician now. A couple of his school friends are physicians or pharmacists too. School faculty is important. Students and parents know what they want is also important.
Submitted by other on April 07, 2019

Most adults I met here were more concerned with separating me from decent students than helping me a little more to succeed under undue stress. I'd rate my experience at this school like two out of five stars. It would have been less bad without the overpopulation, greed and mad teachers. I'm sure truly sociable students with a decent home environment and plenty of confidence in their learning did and do succeed at Independence High School.
Submitted by parent on February 10, 2018

My daughter went to this school and even though at the time the school did not had the best reputation it changed my way of thinking completely. Why do I say this because my child went from failing grades coming from another country to having amazing grades. The after school homework help with teachers and the interest from the teachers to want her to finish strong. now she attends college with a bright future so all i have to say is Thank you. and bulling there was nothing that we had to deal with so neutral for that reason.
Submitted by other on April 11, 2017

My concerns are few of their counselors are not doing their job. My daughter has a female counselor that never response to her or her friends' emails (same counselor). Not a single reply ever received from this female counselor. I wonder how can the kids get help since the counselor don't bother to reply their emails.
Submitted by student on March 28, 2017

School only clean up or fix up places that teachers or staffs visit but Rest rooms which students use and the staffs never use them, are in a terrible condition. Toilet seats broken are not replace for more than half year, hand soap in the dispensers are being contaminated which are left in the rest room to "showcase", really dirty not a decent toilet should look like, etc.....And one of the rest room at the end of the campus, always have a terrible smell of cigareetes......IHS is quite a decent good school but the school need to pay more attention on some detailed and hidden places that they try to avoid.
Submitted by teacher on November 28, 2016

Message for SUBSTITUTES: The office staff (one of them being the principal's secretary) are really susceptible to being hostile and rude to young women. Seriously sick and tired of the dogging and being rudely ignored just because I'm a young graduate who also happens to be a woman. These people must really have a lot of internalized self-hate in order to project it onto other people to make them feel unwelcome. I really like the students and teachers at this school, but I hate having to face the women in the office staff. Which is why I don't go here anymore to sub. ALSO, they don't provide subs bathroom keys, so you have to walk around and find someone to open a bathroom for you.
Submitted by student on August 16, 2013

My school is awesome because when you don't understand or misunderstand something you could always asks teachers to assistance you to became understanding the problems, and you will know that once you get it would be a piece of a cake of any subjects.
Submitted by student on May 06, 2011

I graduated from IHS. Now I'm going to San Jose State University for Engineering (B.S.). This high school has a large campus and the second biggest campus of high school in USA. Teachers are really friendly and good security with police on campus.