5 Ogden Ave
Swarthmore, PA 19081

My experience at this school is a mixed bag, on one hand it's very clean, has good and experienced teachers (depending), has a diverse staff and student body, has some very good opportunities, and cares a lot about extra cariculars. On the other hand, bullying is not taken very seriously, fights happen often, students vape often and occasionally smoke weed in the bathrooms and in class, phone policy is not very strict, and advanced English options are sorely lacking. But overall it is (in my opinion) a good environment for the average child and may be a bad fit for a seriously advanced student.

We moved to this school district for the education system. It is very expensive but cheaper than private schools. This school is diverse but is located in a predominantly white/asian community and upper middle class. Many parents in the community are professors, doctors, and lawyers so that tells you what type of student population you get. Go to upper Darby if you diversity is the only thing that matters. The school is overburdened with IEPs but try to do their best. As a parent you do have to advocate for your child but too many parents I speak to just want to complain as this is the population of people who live in the area. This school takes the rich, middle class and students who live in the housing projects and in my opinion does a good job with integration.

I received a good education, but there are very clearly race disparages between black students and white students. When a white student skips school, there is an intervention. But when a black or Hispanic kid skips they receive no correction. Most of the staff is white so there's very few fresh perspectives, and administration claims to do things about bullying but you have to get parents and the school board involved. They even lied to the police about documentation in a stalking case between two students in an effort to sweep it under the rug. The academics are good if you know where to look but the school does not directly advertise it to the student body so there's a large percentage of the student body just trying to catch up. Also, this website says that the school's AP program is open to all and while that's true, it's all white kids and maybe an Asian kid here and there. The school also purposefully takes pictures of its students of color to make Strath Haven look integrated. Also, the special education system is truly diabolical here. There is no protection for those students and it is hidden from public view. I actually didn't know we had a special education program because it's tucked away in the back of the school and the alternate room is truly just a glorified closet. Oh and here's the kicker, I can't upload this review using my school email because our admins blocked it. And a lot of the students here don't have a personal email until like senior year for college reasons, so it's just oppression.