Scarborough High School

This is our first year at Stevens and we couldn't be more pleased. The teachers and administrators are wonderful and my son thoroughly enjoys the STEAM curriculum.

The school is not what it use to be, they force dual language on families. Moved my children out of the school and my daughter was so far behind in her new school. My son loves his new school because he said "I understand the language." The school definitely needs some work, the students are struggling!

As a brother of someone who goes to this school, all I hear are good things about this place. He comes home very excited about what he learned, and the fun activities he does. I wouldn't usually take the time to write a review, but I had to write this out because according to my brother, this place is worth checking out!

My experience with this school has been mixed. While I deeply appreciate the incorporation of religion into the curriculum—it’s one of the main reasons we chose this school—there are several areas that need serious improvement.One of the most concerning issues is the constant pressure for financial contributions. Both the school and the church regularly request money, citing debt and financial difficulties. This creates stress for many families and raises questions about financial management.Academically, the school falls short. My child has been enrolled for three years and has shown little to no academic improvement. The Student Success Center (tutoring program) is limited and primarily focuses on reading, offering no real support in other subjects. Teachers are often upset if parents try to supplement their child’s education at home, which is disheartening, especially when the classroom progress is minimal.Bullying is a major problem here. Despite bringing concerns to both the principal and assistant principal, nothing is done. It feels like the administration turns a blind eye to the issue, leaving students unprotected.Some teachers seem unqualified or simply uninterested in teaching. On top of that, the focus on religion (which I do value) seems to crowd out time for core subjects, leaving students underprepared in areas like math, science, and writing.As for the extended care program, there is a troubling practice of hiring individuals whose families are major donors to the church, regardless of their qualifications. I’ve personally witnessed these staff members mishandle their responsibilities and fail to properly care for young children.In summary, while the religious instruction is a strong point, the academics, administration, and staffing decisions need significant improvement. I hope the school takes these concerns seriously and makes changes for the better.

I am a former student of this school and graduated recently. Even if I hated my experience there, I will absolutely give credit where the credit is due. For example, they have a great sports program with many active parents and many willing to raise money. The bathrooms are very clean. Parents are active in the church. They do a lot of ISEE test preparation (the tests required to help get you out of middle school and into high school, it’s a big deal to them.) Unfortunately, that is as far as the good parts go. Regarding the other reviews, the leadership DOES change constantly (3 different principals in 3 years.) this is not to disregard the faculty turnover rate, which is also insane (23 different teachers in three years, not counting substitutes.) As for bias, that bias goes to different places. The church and school are always fairly biased about my family and it got a lot of privileges other families did not get, for example I would get to help out in mass a lot and get to go in the teacher’s lounge as a student. The social aspect on the other hand is very cliquey, and the bottom line of that is your child had better play sports or they will not survive. On top of that, if the child isn’t good at a sport, then they had better get good at one. Quick. If not, they will probably struggle with being isolated despite doing everything in their power to be socially successful. Despite picking up a sport, I was shoved in a locker, called gay by my peers, constantly ridiculed for doing art (that would go on to win awards in the archdiocese,) and gossiped about after I gave up trying to impress everyone and decided to start being comfortable in my own skin. The administration does absolutely nothing to prevent bullying beyond giving a sit down talk, there is zero enforcement of rules because they want to keep the kids there and are actively losing headcount every year. A kid once threw a desk at my head and didn’t get in trouble (I asked him to please stop yelling so I could finish my quiz.) Finally, if you are a parent, you aren’t safe from social hierarchy. If you want your kid to be successful in this place, you have to be active in the community. Money that is raised for the school is not often spent on the children’s education, but constantly spent on school events to try to keep everyone active. Therefore and of course, the parent organization is just as cliquey. If you want your kids to grow in their faith and as a person, please send them elsewhere.