On 8th September, 1975, Rio Claro Senior Comprehensive School officially opened its doors as one of the first secondary schools in the area. There was an enrolment of approximately six hundred (600) fourth form students who came from San Fernando and environs. At the inception of the institution, very few students originated from the Rio Claro area. As a result, the school’s first graduation took place at the Palms Club in San Fernando, due its close proximity to the school’s population at the time. There were approximately twenty (20) fourth form classes which prepared students for GCE Ordinary Level Examinations.

In September, 2000, with the introduction of Universal Secondary Education, the school's name was modified from Rio Claro Senior Comprehensive to Rio Claro College and so to did our clientele. We received five form one (1) classes and two (2) remedial teachers to cope with the new challenges. This transformation was commensurate with the region's aim to de-colonize the education system moving from the British GCE exam to the Caribbean based CAPE examinations. In 2004 we started CAPE on a phase basis, making a full transition in 2006.

In 2009 the school’s name transitioned once more. The Rio Claro West Secondary School brand was born. Rio Claro West presently ranks as the top government secondary school in the South Eastern District. In the last decade the institution has made great strides in education having won six (6) National Additional Scholarships in the last decade and seven (7) altogether in the school’s history.