As a previous student of this school, I have mixed feelings. Some of the staff members were incredibly kind and supportive, while others (one in particular) was callous, mean, and lacked any sort of capacity to care for and support students. I, alongside several others, had some issues with him, including him spreading a personal incident that happened with a student out publicly to all students and parents (exposing this person by name). Extremely unprofessional to say the least. Beyond that, I felt very loved and supported by the other members of staff. I felt accepted for who I was— as a very quiet person, I found that I wasn’t judged nor punished for being so, whereas in public school I was. I was able to be open and honest about myself and my identity, which was a breath of fresh air. I didn’t have to conform myself to anyone else’s standards, I could be wholly myself. In terms of education, there really weren’t classes, and I do feel that some restructuring could be helpful. The younger children should be being taught basic subjects, which I didn’t really see at all. I do enjoy that it is a self- motivated structure meant to enlighten students into choosing their own path based on individuality, but I do strongly feel that the younger children didn’t receive ample basic education. I think this school is better for older children and teens who have the skills already to be fluid in their education whilst still having the necessary life skills (basic math, reading, writing, etc). I do feel that, by the structure being so wholly based in individualism, that my mental health was slightly improved by being at HVSS, however some interpersonal conflict did get in the way of that. I do wish there was a little more focus on ensuring mental soundness of all students, however, in the spirit of fairness, I will acknowledge that none of the staff are psychologists and therefore cannot do too much about mental health issues. Overall, there were pros and cons to this school. I recommend it for older students, but definitely not for younger ones. If they fixed the issue of unprofessional staff and lackluster elementary education, I would then highly reccomend it to others.
