In past columns, I’ve often shared information about programs for students who may not follow a traditional academic path. I think it’s important for families to know that at Kelseyville Unified School District (KVUSD), we welcome everyone. Sometimes, though, in my efforts to talk all about our alternative paths, I don’t say enough about the ways we support our college-bound students who love school and want to pursue post-secondary education.
Advanced Classes
One of the ways we support our high-achieving students is by offering a variety of interesting and challenging courses. We have honors, advanced placement and dual enrollment classes. Honors courses are more challenging and accelerated than standard courses, but they do not count for college credit.
Advanced placement (AP) courses are considered college-level courses and they come with recognition in the form of an inflated grade point: As count for 5 points, Bs count for 4 points, and so on. At KHS, we offer AP English Literature and Composition, World History, Calculus, and Spanish Language and Culture. At the end of the school year, students enrolled in AP courses can choose to take a standardized test on the subject, and those who pass their AP exam with a 3, 4, or 5 can sometimes receive college credit for the course at the four-year university of their choice.
Dual Enrollment courses are college courses through Mendocino College. Dual enrollment students get both high school and college credit for the course, and the college credits are transferrable to California State Universities and University of California schools, among others. Dual enrollment courses include Statistics, English Reading and Composition, Fall & Spring Sustainable Vegetable and Fruit Production, and soon we will also offer Entrepreneurial Marketing.
For a small, rural school district, we offer quite a few advanced courses. And, for students who want to blend traditional classes with homeschooling, they can enroll in the Kelseyville Learning Academy (KLA) and take select courses at Kelseyville High (KHS).
AVID
Oftentimes, students on a path to college come from families where their parents went to college. For academically inclined students who come from families where their parents did not attend college, we have a program called AVID. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. It’s a nationwide college readiness program that helps students reach their potential with academic support as well as help with other college prep activities, such as signing up for standardized tests like the SAT or ACT. At KVUSD, we offer AVID starting in elementary school and going all the way through high school. About 20 percent of KHS students are enrolled.
ROBOTICS AND MORE AT MVMS
At the middle school level, in addition to AVID we offer robotics as a STEM (science/technology/engineering/mathematics) class where students use computer coding skills to program robots to solve various challenges. Each May, a team of students represents Mountain Vista Middle School (MVMS) at the annual C-STEM Robotics Competition at U.C. Davis.
We also offer advanced math classes at the seventh- and eighth-grade levels and several enrichment classes for students who do not need an intervention class. Students are placed in advanced math based on SBAC and MAP assessments as well as teacher recommendations. Enrichment classes include Introduction to Spanish, Leadership, TV Production, and Art.
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
To graduate from high school, students must do more than pass their classes; they must also work in the community. Students must complete 50 hours of approved (and documented) community service and either 180 paid work hours or an additional 40 hours of community service. It is important for students to develop an array of skills and qualities—academic, social, work ethic, and more. Extracurricular activities and work experiences in the community expose students to new ways of thinking and learning.
UNIVERSITY ADMIT RECEPTION
I’m really proud of our students’ academic achievements. Every year, the Lake County Office of Education hosts a dinner on the KHS campus for families of all Lake County students who plan to attend a four-year college after high school graduation that year. Traditionally, KHS makes an impressive showing, sending more students to four-year universities than other high schools. As much as we miss them when they go, I look forward to sending many more high school seniors to college again this year.
