Design & Architecture Senior High

2007 graduate here — this school gave me everything and it did it all for free. I love you, DASH, and if I ever become rich and famous I will divert a fair quantity of my income to keeping you alive and well.

You may have found yourself looking at this review as a parent, trying to research the best school to send your 8^th grader to, or maybe you are a student yourself, looking for a better high school than your smelly overcrowded homeschool where you know your creativity will most likely be sucked dry instead of watered with the miracle grow that attending a school like DASH is sure to supply. Well, I’ll give you the skinny on what it really means to graduate from DASH.
First of all, let me start out by saying that I absolutely loved my experience at Design and Architecture Sr. High. The environment of the school is unparalleled to any I have ever heard of: it is fun, diverse, accepting, and creative. Students come from all different backgrounds and neighborhoods of Miami, some over an hour away, just to be able to receive the outstanding education at DASH.
However, in order to have a great experience there, you need to be insanely hard-​working and determined to succeed even when the odds seem like they are against you (i.e. studying for 3 Advanced Placement/​college courses classes, finishing a 15 piece portfolio for review, and memorizing what feels like hundreds of pieces of Pre-​Historic to Renaissance to Contemporary artwork for your Art History class). So be warned. DASH is not a school for slackers. You must be smart, talented, driven, and willing to sacrifice free-​time for occasional all-​nighters. I know that sounds like a lot, but you did successfully find your way to this review, so that’s a good sign. All the effort and energy you bring into attending DASH will be returned to you tenfold.
(Although I can’t make any individual promises and I have no statistical sources, I will also say that there is a much higher concentration of cool kids at DASH than any other school in Miami. Go phantoms!)
All in all, DASH is an amazing opportunity that I am forever grateful to have had growing up in Miami. I highly, highly recommend applying. Best of luck.

I love the fact that Unilocal offers the category for education. Before I start my review I would like to state that I want to go back to High School again. But here, not at the school I did go to. I would have done anything to go to a school like this.
The Design & Architecture Senior High, or DASH as its commonly known, not to be confused with the store on the beach is a Magnet school for Industrial, Fashion and Graphic Design, Filmaking and of course, Architecture. Located in Miami’s Design District, it is for those kids who are creative and free thinkers. If I could give this school ten stars it would deserve every one, but I am limited to five.
DASH creates an environment where young minds are not only encouraged but expected to grow, think and create. Art and design surround you every step you take throughout the school, even in the languages and science classrooms, each and every one of these educators understand the importance of developing the mind through creativity. To encourage problem solving, freethinking and art through uncommon ways.
The question posed to these kids commonly is «why?» They must think and are encouraged to find the reasoning behind things instead of it getting spoon fed to them.
Most of these children not only are artistic in a visual way but their creative side will expand to music as well, its an everyday event to hear music during breaks throughout the school as they play the piano in the cafeteria or bring their guitars.
It is a school full of educators that understand the importance of individuality and expression, and they have the freedom to use instead of being boxed into one type of educational zombie march. I mean, where else during a fire alarm testing as the irritating flashing light interferes with the class (knowing its NOT a real alarm of course) would a teacher turn the lights off and put on disco music and lets the kids enjoy those 5 minutes?
Before anyone goes thinking this school is all about having fun and games, know this:
Dash is ranked by US News & World Report as the #15 school in the nation. As a Magnet it is number TWO in the country, it is the number one Magnet school in Florida. Over all other Magnet Schools in the city. So think about that for a second. This is based on academics, so know that the education couldn’t be better.
What DASH understands which the educational system in Florida and the USA is sadly missing the point on is that creativity does help critical thinking, art does help children learn by forcing their minds to expand and therefore see problems differently and teaches them to think for themselves. For anyone out there thinking we need to cut costs by cutting music and art, take a long hard look at this school and try to make your point.
You won’t have one.