Hewes Middle School

13232 Hewes Avenue

School District

Tustin Unified
Grade

6-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:26
Type

public

School Map for Tustin 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 December 10, 2022

My 2 children went through Hewes and had a very positive experience. The education level is in my opinion more advanced than the majority of any Orange Unified school. Tustin Unified in general is just better than Orange Unified and this is coming from someone who has experience in both at the elementary level and above.
Submitted by parent on October 13, 2021

The amount of homework these kids get is ridiculous. If the newer school (legacy) is a no homework school, why can't all schools get on board? It is devastating to see how much stress this school puts on their students.
Submitted by parent on June 05, 2021

Our child just finished 3 years at Hewes and it was a great school. Teachers were excellent and the classes were well taught and students were friendly. Highly recommend.
Submitted by other on June 07, 2020

Both are kids graduated from Hewes and was very well prepared for their time at Foothill! both went on to highly rated colleges and have done extremely well. Hewes has wonderful teachers and parents actively involved
Submitted by parent on February 06, 2020

We have been quite fortunate in that my son has had a good experience at Hewes. Most of his teachers have been good to adequate and in the classes that the teacher didn't teach, we've been able to support him through tutors or assisting him ourselves. He has a good group of friends that he spends lunch and breaks with and they pretty much avoid the problem areas of school.
Submitted by parent on July 08, 2019

Our experience has been very positive at Hewes. We had heard great things about it, so we had very high expectations. Our student was in accelerated math and Honors core subjects, despite the higher academic subject matter, our student felt the teachers were very clear, and patient with the students.
Submitted by parent on May 16, 2019

The principal is a very nice man with little strength. The good teachers are few. Bullying is out of control. Knows as a bad school.
Submitted by parent on December 17, 2018

Just because the school is in a nicer area does not make it a better experience. The staff has no interest in actually connecting with the kids.
Submitted by parent on October 16, 2018

Better than other schools in the area, but not the best. Not the safest, knives being brought to school, threats of violence, etc.
Submitted by parent on October 26, 2017

The Vice Principal has absolutely ZERO people skills, I'm fairly certain she doesn't even like children. The Principal seems to hide behind her like he is afraid of her. My son was bullied there on multiple occasions and ended up getting the same punishment as the kids who bullied him because he "fought back". There is one teacher there that really helped my son... other than that they are about mediocre, with a few standing out. The guidance counselor is incredible. I feel bad for her that she has to work with the rest of the administration there. The cliques of children are ridiculous. Many children come from money and act like they made it themselves. I have another son approaching middle school and would prefer he not go to Hewes... but a majority of his friends are going, so it may be a bit of a battle to get him to go someplace else.
Submitted by parent on September 15, 2017

So far, I do not like Hewes. But it have been only a month. I have compared to other school with higher ranking than Hewes and I see Hewes as Old school mindset with a lot of homeworks type. My friends have kids in school ranking 10 (not 9 like Hewes) and they have leas homework or assigning weekly giving time for students to manage on weekend or around their extracurricular activities. Hewes teachers assign them nightly due same day or next day.
Submitted by parent on June 21, 2014

2014 is the final year at this school.we left it with a great feeling of satisfaction ..7 years for my 3 kids no complaint,no problem,the teacher ,direction. are..very cooperative ,the students and parents are very friendly ...my daughter ends this year with a straight A , .. ...thank you for all the hewes staff member teacher,students parents ....
Submitted by parent on April 22, 2014

This is our sixth and final year at Hewes. Both of our kids have had superior core teachers every year for English and Social Studies. We have had extremely weak math teachers nearly every year. with the second one, we decided to stop complaining and hire a tutor. Every school has its weak spots-just frustrating when middle school math skills affect high school capabilities negatively. Administration has been excellent, control of behavior fine, and the overall experience very good.
Submitted by parent on October 08, 2013

I read some of the negative reviews and have to disagree. The staff has been very cooperative with me, even when my son forgot his lunch at home. In fact, when my daughter left an important assignment at home, she was allowed to go to the office, call me, and request that I drop it off so she would get full credit. The teachers are very communicative and if you don't know how your student is doing it is because you, the parent, are not engaged. The principal is so warm and kind to the students; my daughter just loves her. Couldn't be happier!
Submitted by parent on June 02, 2013

now we are at the end of our first year. I still say the teachers are responsive, but not proactive. In other words, if you kid is struggling in class, you as a parent better be on top of it, and be in contact with the teacher, because all we've gotten is "progress reports" sent home, but this is only after there's problem. Teachers don't email you or ask you in to discuss anything. I've had to request conferences just so I can see the actual test he's taken because they won't release them. It's a bit frustrating. However, the teachers have been accommodating about meetings, are responsive to emails, and overall my son likes it there. Campus seems to be fairly well supervised. But it sure it as change from our experiences in elementary school -- much more detached.
Submitted by parent on January 09, 2013

I have to agree with some of the comments left about Hewes. I think their envolement with being "politically correct" has become it's main focus and not on it's students. My daughter forgot her lunch one day. I took it into Hewes around the ten o'clock hour and was told they WOULD NOT contact her or even let her know that her lunch was there. When I asked them what they thought my daughter would do now with no lunch, all I got was a blank stare. There was no concern my daughter would go hungry that day, only a reprimand of me because I was asking them to give my daughter her forgotten lunch.....we took our kids out.
Submitted by other on September 14, 2011

I think Hewes is a great school! Classes are very informational, and most teachers incorporate some fun into lessons. If we don't understand anything, teachers are always willing to put their time in to help us. We do get a lot of homework, but most of the time, we are given class time to complete them. I take a long time doing homework, but mostly because I procrastinate and get distracted easily. Last year, rules on homework were very strict. If you missed a homework assignment, intervention, NOT detention, as stated in other reviews, was assigned. Interventions were either during recess or lunch, and we were allowed to eat a snack or lunch during it. Now, interventions have been removed, and we just don't get full credit for missing homework, but getting 2 missed assignments will result in a detention. Some other reviews were complaining about the no cell-phone policy. I think that it's a reasonable rule because there is no way to learn while texting on your phone. Teachers sometimes use them because they have to, and they know how to restrict themselves. Overall, Hewes is a fabulous school! 1 thing I'd like to see is more student leadership positions like president, etc.