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MARY BETH HARRISON
Students in the Alternative Education program went on a field trip to
the Monterey Bay Aquarium this spring where they took a lab class with
one of the biologists. Foothill High School teacher Mark Utheim is shown
with some of the students.
According to Webster’s
Dictionary, alternative means offering or expressing a choice. To the
staff members of the YJUHSD alternative school, alternative means providing
an attitude, an interest, the resources, and an environment to provide
an acceptable choice for student access, notes Foothill High School teacher
Rick Solomon.
Foothill is one of seven alternative schools in the YJUHSD. They are Ahwah-nee,
Evergreen, Foothill, Glacier, Mountain View, Ray-mond Granite and Yosemite
Adult high schools.
FHS and RGHS are necessary small schools because of the distance they
are located from the district’s main campus. AHS and MVHS are continuation
schools, EHS is an independent study school, GHS is a charter school and
YAHS is for students who are over 18.
AHS students attend classes 4-1/2 hours per day and then complete some
of their assignments at home.
Students are involved in a number of projects including planting daffodils
in areas of the community, participating on a Mock Trial team, attending
apprenticeship workshops, going to the opera twice a year, reading Julius
Caesar and following the Iditarod dog sled races.
The students also work on art projects and edit videos. This year they
have gone on field trips to a cotton gin in the valley and to the Monterey
Bay Aquarium.
EHS allows students to earn their high school diploma while having time
for other things such as a job or raising a family.
Students report to the school one day a week to spend at least an hour
with their teacher. They turn in their assignments and receive new assignments
during this visit to school.
EHS offers a full high school curriculum for grades nine through 12.
Students have the opportunity to go on field trips and to work on special
projects.
EHS also offers a program for pregnant or parenting students.
FHS was created to serve students of the Coarsegold community; the facility
is located in Yosemite Lakes Park.
Enrollment is voluntary and designed to help students catch up on credits
to be on track to graduate.
This year, approximately 11 seniors will graduate from a student body
of almost 50.
Students recently went on an overnight field trip to Montana De Oro State
Beach Park on the central coast.
Students investigated the local history, marine biology and geology of
the area while also enjoying the natural beauty.
FHS students also participated in an all-day workshop in apprenticeship
training presented by the local construction labor unions.
The students participated in building rafters, soldering pipe, cutting
steel and operating remote controlled compactors.
A snow board trip and attending a hockey game are also planned.
The student-teacher ratio at FHS is 15-1, allowing students ample time
for individual help.
“Foothill is designed to offer students an alternative to the traditional
teaching methods and building self-esteem to produce effective, successful
lifetime learners,” Mr. Solomon says.
MVHS students are doing a fundraiser to save half an acre of Tropical
Rainforest.
The students and staff set up tables at lunchtime where YHS students can
see items such as humanities tee-shirts, coffee cups and visors that are
being sold to reach their goal.
They need to sell 500 items to raise the money needed.
“Seniors, these items make great thank you gifts for supportive parents
and teachers,” says Tony Tucker, MVHS teacher.
RGHS students work on several activities in addition to their academic
subjects.
They do landscaping projects at their school, work in the woodshop where
they learn to use power tools and work in the school’s kitchen where they
prepare lunch and serve it to the rest of the students every couple weeks.
Students use the computer center almost daily, writing their daily assignments
and researching through the Internet.
A special teacher goes to the school every two weeks to teach computer
classes.
YAHS is a unique independent study program for adults who have not completed
their high school requirements.
Adult basic education classes are offered as well as English as a Second
Language (ESL) classes.
Students can earn a high school diploma or a GED.
Two teachers who are experts in adult education are the staff, Janice
Dissmeyer and Roberta Savolskis.
They teach all of the state and district-required academic subjects as
well as computer skills. Students can schedule individual times at school
to accommodate their work or child rearing schedules.
GHS is a charter school new to the district this year. The school curriculum
is aligned to YHS. Twenty-one students enrolled in GHS at the beginning
of the 2002-03 school year. Mike Cox is the school’s principal.
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