8317 E Gilman Avenue
Arlington, WA 98223

currently a sophomore at this school with a 3.8 GPA. most teachers are good at what they do, and some even make it fun and have a good relationship with students, however this year there is a new principal and with a new principal comes new policies. 2 tardies and you get a lunch detention, dress code is very strict this year, no crop tops, spaghetti straps, back, or shoulders, no phones are allowed at all this year, not even for emergencies. their reasoning for this? If a parent has a question for a student, they can wait, and if they cant, they can call the office to get in contact with he student. what happens when a girl is on her period and they bleed through their pants and need their parent to pick them up? The student cant do anything about it. As a student who speaks to others, I can firmly say that these new policies are outrageous. The tardy policy is absurd, people get lost in the halls and the crowds, its a big school with a lot of people, things happen. the new dress code is honestly just student sexualization. they say its to get you ready for a job because every (most) job has a dress code that you need to follow, but obviously people will follow that, its a formal job, school, contrary to what many adults will say, is not. school is not a job, its what prepares us with he knowledge for a job, and I'd like to really stress KNOWLEDGE, because its not to teach us life lessons, otherwise we'd learn how to pay taxes, vote, and so on. being able to see someone's bra strap does not affect anyone's ability to learn, and if it does, that's their problem, not the person wearing the clothes, because the vast majority of people really don't care what you wear. now although many teachers here are pretty good teachers, and good people too, some are not. about halfway through my freshman year my teacher (not going to name names here although i probably should) pulled out about 5 girls for wearing spaghetti straps and threatens to email their parents and get them in trouble. she also often makes comments toward a pair of female students about their wardrobe choices, saying things like "do you girls own anything that isnt a crop top?" which in mine, and others opinions, is a very inappropriate thing for a teacher to be saying to anyone, let alone students, however during VSCO day (a spirit day) I, a male student, went all out for it, hair up in a tiny ponytail, crop top, short shorts, etc. and i walk into class and she says "I admire your bravery".

This is a truly excellent school. Having personally attended schools in a large city, I think other reviewers may have a distorted idea of what happens at your average large city schools on a daily basis. I have one child currently attending and another to join soon. The small town atmosphere, community involvement and the leadership of the school are most appealing to me.

This is a wonderful school with amazing teachers. The kids feel safe and as a parent me and my kids feel supported.