Vashon Island High School

Reviews

• Submitted by parent on November 26, 2023
  The VISD is horrible beyond words, please look at all the reviews, and protect your children, the superintendent and director of student services should be fired ASAP.
• Submitted by parent on October 02, 2023
  Vashon island is an insular community that has a large number of "commuter" students, but many in the community resent it. The schools have historically been excellent and at some point a decision was made to invite off-island families in order to stabilize enrollment and budgets. This has had pros and cons, but it seems to have led to a lot of focus on looking great instead of being great. Not VHS specifically, but the Vashon Island district as a whole has done a poor job of enforcing positive community norms, so bullying and hate speech are commonplace. There's a shocking amount of anti-lgbtq rhetoric from students in a seemingly liberal community Parents are mostly oblivious to this problem. There's also a lot of drug use that isn't adequately addressed or acknowledged by the administration. Bullying and substance abuse are handled in a very hush-hush way and parents aren't always included in the resolution.In general, students who aren't white, straight, cisgender, and academically standard aren't handled terribly well. The highly capable identification process honor identification from other districts and outside sources, but fails to identify some very gifted kids on its own. The 504 process feels like a "prove it to me" situation where they're seeking as much homogeneity as possible. And microaggressions and outright bullying of racial gender minorities is tolerated.There are some WONDERFUL teachers and staff. There are many good things. But the unwillingness to own and make real change for those who don't fit the mold is truly baffling and heartbreaking in a community long known for its eccentricity.
• Submitted by parent on July 15, 2023
  I write this as a warning to families considering moving to Vashon. This school district is plagued by so many problems, all the result of administrators’ incompetence and gross negligence (and the school board is a spineless disgrace). Teacher impropriety is rampant, there are constant violations of students’ and families’ privacy, cases of student misbehavior (bullying, drugs, etc.) are woefully mishandled, academic quality has declined sharply. These problems are swept under the rug while the district focuses on performative actions, such as getting the wording of the land acknowledgement just right, issuing bold (but hollow) proclamations of equity, and joining a lawsuit blaming social media companies for students’ struggles (which is laughably hypocritical, considering the district’s longstanding embrace of social media). Administrators, in their efforts to cover their ineptitude, are routinely deceitful, dismissive, and condescending in their interactions with parents. Academics are an afterthought. Kids are just passed through the system (hey, check out our stellar graduation rate!), some barely able to read and write, let alone think critically and communicate effectively. The latest academic benchmarks paint a bleak picture: average AP score – 2.9 (that’s failing-->no college credit); % of graduates who need remedial coursework in college – above state average; % of graduates who drop out of college – above state average. In short, the folks in charge are destroying the district while patting themselves on the back for a job well done. It’s surreal. These kids deserve better.
• Submitted by parent on April 23, 2023
  They won't let me post my concerns. That alone should tell you something. Some has been mentioned below. More than concerning. Had 3 kids in 3 schools. Would never recommend.
• Submitted by parent on February 13, 2023
  It was a great school district at one time. It's completely gone downhill. "Alleged" sexual misconduct by multiple teachers. The principal fleeing mid year. The drug problem is rampant. Bullying/violence is tolerated until a school wide protest. Absolutely horrible schools.
• Submitted by other on October 16, 2022
  i attended this high school from 2013-2016, one of the teachers was caught having an intimate relationship with a student and is still employed, all the students knew about it. ANOTHER teacher has just been caught spending time at a students HOUSE and having an intimate relationship with him, and the school dropped the case. don’t send your kids here!!!!
• Submitted by other on February 13, 2022
  I went to Vashon schools my entire life, and I have never been more hurt by anything in my life. The environment was so extremely harmful and hateful that I developed multiple mental illnesses that will impact the rest of my life- all because of these schools and the environment I was raised in. You see on this page that there is little to no racial variety at this school; and I feel that should be a dead giveaway for how POC students are treated. In case you expect that they would be respectful; don't. If you are a POC or have a POC child and are considering VHS? Run. I spent my entire life being called racial slurs, getting beat up, and having even the staff be racist towards me. Through my time there, I watched all the other POC students get put through the same or similar ringers. Vashon Island Schools are NOT a safe place for any POC. Oh, and if you or your child are LGBTQ, I would recommend staying far away from here as well. It may have changed, as people tend to believe that tolerance and acceptance of LGBTQ people is on the rise- but I was also bullied and harmed for being transgender. This school is racist, has the worst principle and management that I have ever seen. While I was in attendance, there were over 40 school shooting threats made by one student, and he was NEVER punished. I watched that white child get nothing more than a slap on the wrist for threatening lives and telling me to my face that I "would be the first one he shot"- yet I was suspended over skipping classes because I did not want to get beat up. Also, there is widespread use of drugs through the entire school system, it is extremely common to be peer pressured into Hard Drugs, and there is no way a student can make it through that school system without being pressured into doing some kind of drug. TL;DR, If you are a POC, LGBT, or have a child who is and are considering this school; for your own safety, pick another school.
• Submitted by other on September 02, 2016
  I had an amazing four years at VHS! I was part of the class of 2016 and I graduated feeling prepared to take on UW this fall. The classes range in difficulty, but most core classes, especially APs, are pretty challenging (but manageable). You can achieve success if you work at it. I wish we had been offered more AP classes and electives, but since we are a small school, there aren't enough teachers to teach them all, or students to fill them. However, having about 100 people in your class is beneficial, because you can get one-on-one help from teachers and you can get to know them pretty well (i.e. good recommendation letters). The social aspect of VHS is very calm, welcoming, and inclusive. The academics at VHS are held with pretty high regard to my understanding in comparison to other high schools in the state. There's a lot of homework and tests are worth a large part of your grade, but it's worth it if you want to succeed in the real world.
• Submitted by other on March 14, 2016
  This school has a new beautiful building, but whats inside is very lacking. Very minimal to no support for students. There are some good teachers and some who really should not be teaching at all. A few years ago under a different principal this school was a wonderful community based school, but now just a big disappointment
• Submitted by parent on March 07, 2016
  fine scores and statistics but no heart or soul. Lacks administrative ethic. Beautiful new campus and building with nobody home inside. So sad.
• Submitted by other on May 06, 2015
  Vashon High School offers things you won't find elsewhere. Its a great environment to grow up in and appears to be getting better. The administration has improved over the past couple years and they have a beautiful new building. My only scruples concern the quality of its counsellors and its weak but improving focus on STEM. (Contrary to a previous comment, to my knowledge close to no resources or efforts are used to recruit off island kids.)
• Submitted by parent on March 22, 2012
  The district - especially at the high school level - needs to spend more time and effort taking care of the needs of its current students instead of working so hard to recruit off-island kids. The off-island students bring a diversity to the school which is important and we're glad to have them. But, we have too many island families frustrated with VHS resulting in either home schooling or departure for other schools. The district doesn't seem to care about these losses. Nor does the district really want parent involvement except for the annual auction or levy vote. And, when a parent complains, the district makes them feel like dirt for rocking the boat. A course in customer service should be required for administrators and faculty.

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