The desire to produce high quality schools; a standard of excellence, is a goal of many, but very few are showing the world of education what that looks like. Orangeburg-Wilkinson, affectionately known as “O-W,” is the setting. An urban high school, predominately African-American, gives unprecedented access into the lives, struggles, and triumphs of O-W’s students and those working with them, including Dr. Stephen Peters, who served as principal of the school at the time of filming. From start to finish, everything you see is real, including the transformation of a failing school to a place many students will forever call home. American High School is a tribute to public education.