Windham High School

64 London Bridge Road

School District

Windham
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:14
Type

public

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 01, 2022

Windham High School strives to serve. They do suffer from staffing shortages, and because of high praise nationally, the classes have become overcrowded, which is unacceptable given they built the high school such a short time ago. The curriculum is rounded and promotes critical thinking. They promote A/P coursework and high academic performance. I would not recommend the school for special needs. It is not so much the school's fault than it is a New Hampshire issue. For special education, the district is supportive in elementary, but for middle school and high school, too much parental oversight is needed for effective implementation of basic executive function development. Special education paraprofessionals are under-trained and under-staffed. There is a lot of lip service, and you are better served in Massachusetts, where the state funding is put to good use. There should be less emphasis on sports, but that's an observation that could be made of most high schools in the US. It is a positive place to raise a child. I do think the policies of inclusion, tolerance, and acceptance overall are a notch over adequate.
Submitted by parent on April 19, 2021

I learned a lot. However, I believe my mental health underwent more harm than the benefits that I received. Horrible stress culture that nobody likes to talk about. Would not want to go back for even a minute.
Submitted by parent on January 21, 2020

There are great teachers who care about students! However, sometimes, certain adults have a negative attitude when addressing concerns.
Submitted by parent on April 18, 2018

I wanted to love this school. We came here and we're paying extremely high taxes to live here. I wish it was better, but the experience thus far has proven it to be less-than-what-we-had-hoped for our child. The homework load appears to be a "statement" about rigor rather than holding any actual value in the learning process, while the lack of ability to review tests and learn from mistakes shows the counterintuitive methods employed by this school. While the opportunity to participate in clubs is great, that can be found at almost any high school. There is an arrogance that is evident in the culture of the school, in the leadership and student body, not including the teachers, which leads me to think it is at least partially due to the affluence that abounds. There are teachers there that really have no previous experience teaching their subject matter, who turn kids off with their lack of understanding of the subject matter, who lack passion for teaching what they should be teaching. A good example: there was a power outage, and instead of the science teacher leading the class in a discussion about ANYTHING related to the subject, he kids wasted an entire period doing nothing. This kills the passion in students who previously loved, for example, SCIENCE! Another duo of teachers claim to be excited about teaching literature and world history, but instead, overrun the kids with busy work and very shallow coverage of "literature." It's so sad. The loss of real "Language Arts" and real "Social Studies" is a blow to the culture in general, but especially to our children. With all of the bells-and-whistles at this school, the luster is very shallow.
Submitted by parent on July 21, 2013

Please do not confuse the availability of modern teaching technology with the quality of instruction and that of the curriculum. Whether your child can meaningfully read and analyze Dickens or perform differentiation in the math class has nothing to do with technology. While we are constantly investing ever more dollars in classroom technology, our kids are failing the most important tests in ever increasing numbers. The solution is not to further increase the technological investments, but to have dedicated teachers who motivate the students, who can themselves do the differentiation without looking it up in the book first, and have enlightened administrators who design curricula not with the latest fads in mind but with intention of lasting intellectual impact. WHS is great in technology. But based on my visit with them, it is not so great in intellect.
Submitted by student on April 06, 2013

Windham high school is truly a unique school! The curriculum is taught by some of the best teachers in the state of New Hampshire. The Technology provided at this school is insane. The greatest thing about this school is the teachers. The majority of the teachers at this school dedicate 110% to ensure there students are successful. Many of them have come from previous professions, and are not intent on there income but rather the success of there students. This year, 10 students were admitted into Ivy League Universities. The Windham Jaguars dominate in New Hampshire Division two and three athletics and hold several state titles. This is very impressive considering the high school was constructed only four years ago.The one thing this school could improve is the balance between the difficulty of the classed. Regular classes are very easy, and have little to no homework, while Honors classes are considerably harder and average about 2 hours of homework a night. The content is Honors or AP classes is a lot more difficult than regular CP classes. Another drawback is the fact that there is no track, and the school lacks several athletic facilities.
Submitted by student on March 15, 2013

The teachers give 110% all the time. There is a large amount of homework, but it is helpful and relates to the topics studied in class. The school issues you a Mac book which is extremely helpful with just about everything you do. The teachers are also top notch. Our principle just got principle of the year and we have had teachers win teacher of the year as well. There are a wide variety of courses with all levels of difficulty. This school is only four years old as well. This is a great school to attend.
Submitted by parent on September 30, 2012

windham high has some of the highest paid teachers and staff in the state.and it shows in the accomplishments of its students .i was shocked to see the negative comments but i do remember those same comments being made by members of a neighboring town who were against their towns involvement in windham high.
Submitted by parent on September 21, 2012

This school does not take into consideration the needs and learning styles of students unless they fit a specific mold. Any young adult who is not garbed in the latest fashions, perceived by the teachers and administration to be on the fast track for an exclusive collage or backed by a town supported political parent is ignored, ridiculed or pushed toward leaving the school because they do not fit. The administration truly bullies students, belittles parent concerns, and fosters a hostile learning environment. If you have a child who is a free thinker, intelligent enough to need a true challenge, or has any sort of real skill this school will crush them into a therapy needing individual. It is the Stepford school on the hill, something out of a freakish nightmare. Please beware.
Submitted by parent on May 16, 2012

Windham High School is fine if your child is Average to Above Average. In fact, the grading system is set up to help the average child get higher grades. They can retake tests if the score is below 75%. The homework load is quite heavy. But many teachers rarely check the homework, so the child gets credit for doing the work, not necessarily doing it correctly. Honors students have an enormous homework load. The humanities dept. is dominated by young, inexperienced teachers who are overwhelmed by combined Lit/Soc. Studies classes. Sometimes with as many 40+ kids in those classes. Finally, If your child has an IEP, like mine, be prepared for hair-pulling bureaucracy. I don't know one parent of a high school student with an IEP who is satisfied with SPED. I recommend finding another district if your child has an IEP. Harsh I know. Windham HS is new & has a ways to go to be a mature school with well developed plans and rules. In the meantime, they tenaciously hold to arbitrary rules they made up that don't help the child. WHS touts itself as the public version of Phillips Exeter. It isn't even close.