Among final seven honorees from 409 nominations
WHAT: The Health Science Academy at Ygnacio Valley High School (YVHS) in the Mt. Diablo Unified School District (MDUSD) has been named by the California Department of Education (CDE) as a California Partnership Academies (CPA) Distinguished California Partnership Academy. YVHS is one of seven to be conferred with the award from a field of 409 nominees and 14 finalists.
WHEN: Honored academies will be recognized at the CDE’s 30th annual CPA conference in March.
WHERE: Ygnacio Valley High School, 755 Oak Grove Rd., Concord 94519 (Directions)
BACKGROUND:
The California Partnership Academies (CPAs) were established to prepare high school students to succeed in both college and careers. Each CPA frames its curriculum around one of the 15 industry fields established for Career-Technical Education by the CDE. Each year students take classes together, including core academic subjects and at least one career-technical course related to the academy’s career theme. A team of teachers works with the same group of students over their high school years, linking instruction across disciplines and over time. Employers provide internships and other opportunities for students to learn outside the classroom. Career academies have become an important part of the current Linked Learning initiative in California.
“Distinguished Academies” have earned this title by surviving a rigorous multi-round audit of all program components required by California Education Code. The audit includes site visits by CPA state leadership and extensive documentation. In its notification to YVHS of the nomination and subsequent award for the school’s Health Science Academy, the CPA state leadership stated the honor was “bestowed based on very clear criteria, including strict adherence to the CPA model, implementation of all components of the model and known best practices, and providing opportunities for your students which go above and beyond those required by statute.” The notification goes on to state that the Health Science Academy program has “consistently shown itself to be exemplary in intent and implementation.”
Ygnacio Valley High School was notified recently that its Careers in Education Academy has been nominated as a Distinguished Academy for next year; it is now preparing for the audit and site visits associated with that nomination.
To visit Ygnacio Valley High School, please contact Principal Efa Huckaby, (925) 685-8414, huckabye@mdusd.org, or Communications Specialist Ursula Leimbach, (760) 705-6919 (cell), or communications@mdusd.org.
Mt. Diablo Unified, located in Contra Costa County, is honored to serve approximately 32,000 students at one of more than 50 school sites in the cities of Clayton, Concord, Pleasant Hill; portions of Martinez, Pittsburg and Walnut Creek; and the unincorporated communities of Bay Point, Lafayette, and Pacheco. As part of a richly diverse community, MDUSD families represent numerous ethnic groups, speaking nearly 50 different languages and dialects. We are proud of our award-winning staff and extensive honors and recognitions for our innovative programs in Career Technical Education; Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM); extensive visual and performing arts programs; and rich foreign language and dual immersion offerings. MDUSD is also pleased to have launched its first middle college program, College Now, and is planning to open its first International Baccalaureate program in 2017. Extensive student support services help ensure an inclusive culture of excellence and achievement for all students to help them prepare for success in college, career, and life. Learn more at http://www.mdusd.org/
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