Coral Reef Senior High School

As a wallflower, I was able to pass by all four years without tipping over. So for me personally, it wasn't that bad. For others, they were robbed of a fun experience because they were doomed at the bottom of the social hierarchy.

My son is a sophomore at the VPA strand. He loves it! He has made lots of friends and academically he is challenged and doing great. Although the school is big, the strands give it the small school feeling. I couldn't have asked for a better place for my son to experience high school in.

The school is amazing. I am enrolled in Coral Reef Senior High and I'm in the IB program. I have to stay although difficult it's really preparing me for something great. This school not only is great academically, the people there are wonderful; everyone I've met hasn't done anything but be nice. This school has a great variety of kids all with different interest. We have 7 different academics. It's also a bully free zone school. I'm honored to be apart of this school. It's definitely worth it, so you should encourage your kids to apply.- submitted by a student

This school's somewhat undeserved high reputation is based on its IB and VPA strands, but beware the others, especially Agriscience. It's marketed as Biotechnology, but in reality completely based on Future Farmers of America - think Boy Scouts for farmers and grades based on merit badge type competitions, including memorizing the motto and creed, or buying a stiff cordoroy FFA jacket to swelter in the Miami heat in. Or attending a local church service for "bonding" with your classmates. Yes, really. What did it for us was my child's answer of "respiration" on a SCIENCE test didn't even receive partial credit because the FFA approved answer was "breathing." A complete joke. MDCPS should be embarrassed to even offer this. Also, keep in mind that magnets severely limit your child's elective choices, and foreign languages count as electives. So choose this magnet, and your kid can take FFA and three years of whatever language they choose if they are college bound. The school is also very strict, or at least was under Principal Leal, and students could get in trouble for not having their shirt tucked in, for example. We couldn't get our child out of there fast enough.