Berkeley High School

Our family had an awful experience at BH, my son attended BH, and would advice any parent to think twice before going into the "diversity" the school sells. Do your own research and don't be fooled by the few items that are positive about the school, while it is true that the school prepares your child for life, so does the jungle, so think twice.

Berkeley High is a wonderfully diverse institution that thoroughly prepares it's graduates for life.

I am a current student at Berkeley High and it has been really hard. Teachers could care less about my thoughts and opinions in the classroom and discussions are rare. I mostly learn from packets, textbooks, and worksheets. I'm in IB and the kids are competitive and close-minded. Everyone only cares about themselves and their own grade and don't really care about what they're learning, as long as it gets them into a prestigious school. Dominant students get A's and introverts or students with learning challenges don't get any attention. If you are looking to send your child here, I would suggest looking to a smaller school if they genuinely love to learn and appreciate community-like learning.

Berkeley High is amazing in so many ways. Students are able to find such interesting classes: afro-hatien dance, video production, computer programming, forensic science. My kids (a junior and a sophomore in AC) have had an amazing experience overall. The principal is very engaging with the students and very communicative with parents. The staff, counselors, and volunteers are very helpful. Many of the teachers are excellent. The down sides are that it's an enormous school, so you really need to watch your kids on powerschool and communicate with them about typical high school problems (drugs, feeling lonely, trying to fit in, and so on...). If you advocate for your child, they will come out of Berkeley High being independent and worldly.