SW Riverside Dr
Portland, OR 97219

We have been in the Riverdale School District since 2010. The teachers are phenomenal. There are no "AP classes" but there are Honors options that prepare students for AP tests, like another private school in Portland. My son just took the Human Geography AP test. We are waiting for the score but he is confident he did well. His PreACT score was a composite score of 31 out of 35. The school has a full time college counselor, for a public school with less than 200 students that means lots of individualized attention for your student. My daughter graduated from Riverdale HS 2022 and is now attending Smith College in Massachusetts and says she was well prepared for all the writing she has to do. At Riverdale the students have to do a Capstone project and present in their senior year. RHS has no cut sports program. RHS has girls flag football! The teachers know every single student. So if you value small class sizes and a college prep program you should consider Riverdale HS.

Riverdale, like other affluent school districts, receives strong support from parents who are actively involved in everything from occasional major events to day-to-day activities. My two children are neurodivergent, and I was so impressed with how involved and supportive the staff is. One of my children is in the 99th percentile for his age, and they have been so patient and wonderful with him. He feels loved and supported despite feeling restricted by the requirements of the public school system. There are plenty of after-school activities, from French to yoga and crafts, but I can't speak to those because my kids have never participated in them. However, it is also on you to speak up if there are any issues. You can't be an absentee parent there or anywhere else. It shouldn't be something to mention, but some parents expect to drop their kids off at the best school and not do any work. All in all, there is a good reason Riverdale is the #1 best school in Oregon, as well as probably the only one in the Portland area with budgetary problems. I wouldn't send my kids anywhere else.