Alameda High School
Parent Q&A
Parent Reviews
Parents, please Sign in to post a review on this page.My daughter went through Alameda High and my son is there now. It's not as diverse as BHS or Oakland Tech, primarily in that it has a tiny Black population. But it's a lot more diverse than some of the "fake" (to use your daughters' term) suburbs. AHS is more Asian than white, and has a lot of diversity within that - recent immigrants vs. many generations in the US, well-off and not, many countries of origin (China, Mongolia, Philippines, and on). Encinal High is on the West End and is as diverse as it gets - when I looked a few years ago it was 20-30% each white, Latino, Asian, and Black. Both are really strong schools and have a lot of community support, AHS is higher income and tests higher. AHS is open campus and when my elderly parents used to come over and eat lunch on Park St. they'd often remark how nice the AHS kids were. At the risk of hyperbole, Alameda has been an idyllic place to raise our kids. They've walked to school K-12, much of the island is within walking distance of Webster or Park St for kids to hang out, and the beach and the bay are just down the street.
Archived Q&A and Reviews
April 2011
Re: Questions about Alameda Middle & High Schools
We live in Alameda and my kids go to Alameda High and Lincoln Middle school. They are both great schools. The high school has excellent teachers and a good AP program. It has a mix of students, with a lot of high achievers. Lots of kids get into great colleges and universities. They have high number of National Merit scholars. They also have a lot of clubs and sports to do, with a good Booster parent program. They don't have a lot of money, but our local Parcel tax just passed, so that was a good sign that there are some people here that support the schools. It is a little smaller than most high schools with 1800 students. Lincoln middle school has mostly great teachers, with a few that are not so great. It has about 1000 students, but most are good students. Overall, it is a well run school and a lot of PTA support. They also have a few sports teams that are funded by the parents. We are very happy with our experience at these schools. angie
Nov 2003
Re: Public school v. private school in Alameda
The short version of what I have to say about your question is that Alameda is blessed with a whole bunch of good schools and good teachers, including the high schools.... I have to say that Alameda High is a great school. About 80% of the kids are involved in extracurricular activities, including really outstanding art, music, drama, and athletic programs. Particularly for ''high achieving'' students [and don't almost all parents of young children who read these postings believe or hope that their kids will be that?], but I think for almost all students, AHS has really excellent academics. The A.P. program is very strong. Every year AHS students are admitted to the top schools in the country, including Ivy League schools and the top U.C.'s. Contrary to what may be a public perception, many of the teachers at AHS are ''overqualified'' educationally for their jobs. For example, in the history/social studies department, most members have graduate degrees. The science department alone has three Ph.D.'s teaching. The staff includes three former lawyers and a former Rhodes Scholar. Much more importantly, the staff is filled with incredibly dedicated, bright, caring, experienced teachers. There is a lot of other great stuff going on there too, but I think I'll end this here. It definitely is not "so-so." Rob
My son went to Jr. Jets last year so I don't have direct experience with the high school but my overall impression of the school was that it's an absolute gem. It's a smaller school with a strong sense of community. The diversity there on every axis is great - racial, income, family background, everything. My son also has a very light IEP, and that transition from elementary school was lacking, so you might need to advocate to make sure that everyone's tuned into that. FWIW I've also been impressed by Alameda USD's process of figuring out what instruction will look like next year. I would definitely put Encinal on your list of possible schools.
My daughter went to Alameda High and did very well there, but took mostly AP classes and didn't require extra support. My son chose to go to Encinal because it's smaller, and much more diverse. He just qualified for an IEP, and I've been very impressed with the special ed staff so far (though who knows what support will look like now in the age of Covid). FWIW, my kids are mixed race. Both schools have some wonderful teachers, and both have ones that should definitely find a new line of work. Encinal just replaced their principle, so I don't know what that will do to shake things up. I think the class offerings at Encinal are much more innovative than at Alameda high which tends to be more traditional. As far as buying a house on the island, the west end, generally speaking, has a cooler vibe, but there is definitely an East/West divide and racism and classism are real here.
My son went to a charter middle school on the West End and is now a rising Senior at Alameda High. He has a 504 that also allows him extra time for long class assignments and tests. We have been quite pleased with AHS, so far. The principal is a strong leader and manager, and is approachable though he and his assistant principals seem to carry a very heavy load so it's hard to get their attention sometimes.
Most of our son's teachers have been good - very good, a couple have been exceptional, and a couple have been subpar. He's taken honors and AP classes, and all of those teachers have been very strong. And his guidance counselor has also been very supportive and responsive, even though she also has a very heavy student load.
Yes, AHS is less diverse than Encinal (which is one of the reasons why we opted for a middle school across town) but his friend group has expanded and now includes pals who come from a wide range of socioecnomic backgrounds, which is a great thing. Both schools have started offering really interesting pre-college electives -- AHS offers Biotechnology courses, Sports Medicine courses and AP Computer Science. They are both excellent schools. One difference though is the school size. AHS has about 1800 students and EHS about 1300 so by virtue of its larger size, AHS is able to offer more AP classes and sections and I'm guessing, more extracurricular activities.
All that being said, next year is obviously going to be wildly different from anything we have ever known. But as another reviewer mentioned, I have been so very impressed with the way our Superintendent and his incredible staff have tackled this impossible task for figuring out how best to proceed. They have gone above and beyond to solicit input from all stakeholders multiple times, they've been methodical and transparent, and have come up with what I feel is a terrific plan. Unfortunately, we likely won't be starting off with the hybrid Flex Option and Remote Option in August and instead will be going Distance Learning and Remote.