Potomac Falls High School is a public secondary school in Sterling, Virginia unincorporated area in Loudoun County. The school is part of the Loudoun County Public Schools system.

History

Potomac Falls High School opened in 1997. It was the first high school built in the county in 21 years, following Park View's opening in 1976.

The high school design for Potomac Falls has been used for every new high school built in Loudoun County since then. Stone Bridge opened in 2000 with Potomac Falls' design, but with a larger auditorium and some additional classrooms. Heritage, Dominion, Briar Woods, Freedom, Woodgrove, Tuscarora, John Champe, also all use the same design. The design remained but was updated for Rock Ridge and Riverside.

Lawsuits Demmon v. Loudoun County Public Schools, 342 F.Supp.2d 474 (E.D. Va. 2004) – As a fundraiser, a parent organization offered parents and community members the opportunity to purchase and order inscriptions for paving bricks to be placed in a sidewalk around the flagpoles at Potomac Falls High School. Purchasers could choose text and/or symbols to be inscribed on the bricks. Some purchasers paid to have their bricks inscribed with a Latin cross. After one parent complained, school officials removed from the walkway every brick containing a cross symbol.

Case Status – The court held that free speech rights of parents were violated where the school removed bricks inscribed with a Latin cross. The court held that symbols were not school-sponsored speech; and that a walkway where the bricks were displayed constituted a designated or limited public forum and that the school engaged in prohibited “viewpoint discrimination.” The bricks were later reinstated.

Demographics In the 2018-2019 year there were 1,634 students enrolled in Potomac Falls High School.

Enrollment by race/ethnicity was 50.67% White, 22.34% Hispanic, 12.73% Asian, 8.63% Black, and 5.63% other.

Enrollment by gender was 52.39% Male and 47.61% Female. +Enrollment By Grade9th10th11th12thStudents437373413411

Accreditation and test scores

Accreditation Potomac Falls is a fully accredited high school based on its overall performance on the Standards of Learning tests in Virginia.

SAT scores The average SAT score in 2006 for Potomac Falls was a 1,555 (532 in Math; 517 in Critical Reading; 506 in Writing).

School Year Mathematics Critical Reading Writing Total 2000–2001 515 516 n/a 1,031 2001–2002 526 531 n/a 1,057 2002–2003 531 528 n/a 1,059 2003–2004 533 534 n/a 1,067 2004–2005 542 534 n/a 1,076 2005–2006 532 517 506 1,555 (1,049 M & CR)

Enrollment history School Year Number of Students 1997–1998 858 1998–1999 1,216 1999–2000 1,380 2000–2001 1,506 2001–2002 1,579 2002–2003 1,641 2003–2004 1,414 2004–2005 1,405 2005–2006 1,455 2006–2007 1,488 2007–2008 1,503 2008–2009 1,533 2009–2010 1,538 2010–2011 1,504 2011–2012 1,5212012–131,5502013–141,5602014–151,6112015–161,6332017–181,6652018–191,634

Extracurricular activities

Band The Potomac Falls band has earned the title of Virginia Honor Band by the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association (VBODA) over eight times since its opening in 1997 (1998–2014)(2012), attaining overall "superior" ratings at both the State Marching Band Festival each of those years.

Notable alumni Jalen Coker, football wide receiver for the Holy Cross Crusaders. Played for the Carolina Panthers during the 2024 season. (2020 graduate) Bret Halsey, played college soccer at the University of Virginia, defender for Real Salt Lake and FC Cincinnati 2. (2018 graduate) Matt McLean, won a gold medal in swimming at the 2012 London Olympics. (2006 graduate) Nate Savino, played college baseball at the University of Virginia, professional baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks. (2019 graduate) Conor Shanosky, played for DC United 2009–2014. (2009 graduate) Adrian Tracy, played college football at William & Mary and later played for the New York Giants. (2005 graduate)

Notes