Charter
school rumors wrong, teacher says
It's not supposed to be 'us versus them'
By Christy Scott
The Alpine Sun
PINE VALLEY — Some Mtn. Empire High School students have
raised concerns about the recent focus on violence at their
school, defended MEHS, and made several serious allegations
regarding the Applied Sciences and Technology Academy charter
school in letters to The Alpine Sun.
MEHS teacher William Leblanc, who organized the letter-writing
campaign, also urged The Sun to follow up on the ASTA
allegations, writing, “I’ve heard so many reports of
cheating at ASTA that I have to believe there is something to
it.”
Allegations include cheating at the charter school,
quality of education received, and insistence that the credits
earned there aren’t recognized by universities.
ASTA staff responded vigorously to the claims, which appear
either outdated or exaggerated.
“For parents to be pulling the students out of MEHS because of
the violence and then transferring them to ASTA is completely
uncalled for and an unintelligent move,” wrote MEHS senior
Nicole Kelly.
“I have heard and witnessed many imperfections with the
charter school and find it to be a joke...where the students are
able to retrieve teachers passwords, cheat their way through
courses, and have a lack of supervision,” Kelly wrote.
Garrett Brunet, Charlie Mackey and Jake Deitchman wrote in a
letter to the editor that ASTA students are, “the ones that
were getting a C average so they went to the Pine Valley Charter
School where they were getting an A or B average.”
“We have some friends that went and tried that school, and the
first thing they learned there is that all the students have the
teacher’s password to the main computer,” continued the
three boys. “The students would just have to put in that
password and get all the answers to the work and to the test.
They can even change their grades if they had to.”
“At the end of last year, we did have a problem,” responded
ASTA Marketing Coordinator, Audra White. She continued to say
that staff have taken action to fix any problems. “How you go
back and deal with the problems is what matters,” White said.
New security procedures were put in place at ASTA, including a
new block on the computer server and constantly changed
passwords. Students are supervised closely and no longer sign
themselves in.
“We are aware that there was a problem,” said Director
Dianne Yops. “We have had students who were found to be not
truthful, and when that happens, the work in question is thrown
out and the student has to redo it.”
“The system isn’t perfect; we know that,” said Yops. “If
a student is thought to be cheating – they get all A’s on
their lessons but then come in a get F’s on the exams – we
know something is wrong. They obviously haven’t learned the
material, and we’ll have them redo the lessons.”
Another serious allegation made against the charter school is
that of accreditation. Some of the MEHS students argued that
credits earned at ASTA are not transferable to other schools.
“If you want your child to learn how to waste time, waste
resources, and do nothing with their life then yes, ASTA is the
place to send your child,” wrote MEHS senior Krystina
Hernandez. “ASTA is a joke; the credits that are earned
aren’t even recognized by today’s universities.”
Another student, Tiffany Vukasinovich, wrote about a specific
student’s experience as an ASTA who transferred back to MEHS.
“She found out that the classes she took at that charter
school did not satisfy university requirements,” stated
Vukasinovich. “This charter school is not accredited and SDSU
will only accept grades of students from accredited high
schools, like MEHS.”
Yops responded to this specific instance by clarifying that upon
transfer it is the responsibility of the new school to verify
the credits from other institutions.
This particular student’s case is ongoing right now and Yops
is working with MEHS staff to rectify the situation.
“Any school can contact ASTA to get the student syllabus,”
White said, “to see that it meets accreditation requirements
at other schools.”
The question of accreditation is one that could be confusing to
many people, as it is true that the school itself is not yet
accredited. However, the curriculum which is being taught at
ASTA, Odyssey ware: Switched on Schoolhouse, is a longstanding
nationally accredited program.
“All credits achieved at ASTA are transferable to any high
school,” the ASTA website states. Learn more at http://www.aop.com/Cultures/en-US/Academy/AcademyHomePage.htm.
ASTA administrators will meet with the Western Association of
Schools and Colleges, the primary Western states accrediting
organization, for accreditation review.
“The website says this is typically a two-year process and
ASTA Charter will have it's initial walkthrough this spring.
“We’re in the process of being accredited,” said White,
“all new schools go through this process.
“92 percent of our Pine Valley charter school students pass
the High School Exit Exam,” Yops wrote in a recent report. At
the high school, 74 percent passed the math portion of the test
and 81 percent passed the language skills portion, accordinjg to
the state’s website.
Furthermore, the schools Academic Performance Index rose 129
points, a boast no other school in the district can make.
Neither the district’s high school nor junior high met
expected growth targets, according the state’s API website, http://www.cde.ca.gov.
Another allegation made by some of the students was in response
to the proclamation of violence at MEHS. Students pronounced
that the issue was being exaggerated and that ASTA has had its
own share of violence problems.
“The deputy sheriffs have had to intervene in many
situations,” wrote Mtn. Empire ASB President Kourtney Reynolds
in a letter to The Alpine Sun editor, “to the point where
their teachers/babysitters have to escort the students everyday
to and from the store during their numerous breaks.”
In actuality, there has not been one fight at ASTA since its
doors opened more than two years ago, according to school
officials. All ASTA students are bound by a signed behavior
code, and a zero tolerance policy is in effect.
“There was one incident earlier this year,” White said,
explaining that some ex-ASTA students came to the school and
threatened some current students. “The students came directly
to us and we dealt with it right away,” she continued. Working
with Pine Valley deputies, White contacted parents and teachers
and the would-be attack averted.
The introduction of the charter school has caused a kind of rift
in the MEUSD. For decades Mtn. Empire was the only choice for
high school students within the district and many remain
skeptical of ASTA and the charter school system.
“It’s very difficult when something new comes around,”
said ASTA teacher Laurie Powers, “just because it’s not
traditional.”
“This is a school of choice,” said Yops. “It’s not us
versus them.”
Click
here to E-mail Christy Scott
|
|
