School Profile

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1 School Profile Table 1 THE ENVIRONMENTAL CHARTER HIGH SCHOOL APPROACH SMALL LEARNING COMMUNITIES RIGOROUS, INTERDISCIPLINARY CURRICULUM & AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT RELEVANT & ENGAGING INSTRUCTION ENVIRONMENT & EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR COMMUNITIES Environmental Charter High School, the award-winning public high school located in South Los Angeles, resides steps from one of the busiest freeways in the world. Our learning community equips all students with the knowledge & skills to graduate from college while inspiring them to discover their own sense of purpose. We hope to empower them to become quality stewards of their community & world. Since ECHS inception in 2000, students are surrounded with a unique learning experience that utilizes environmental service learning to inspire students to find authentic meaning in their studies, & the results are clear--students who are prepared for college, motivated to continue their learning & desire to positively contribute to their community. Our growing network of schools--spanning from 6th to 12th grades--serve South Los Angeles neighborhoods with crime rates that are twice that of the national average, low levels of educational attainment & high levels of poverty. ECHS is a Title 1 school with 81% of students at or below the poverty line. ECHS Current Grade Grade Grade Grade Total Demographics Latino Asian African-American Caucasian/Other Free/Reduced Lunch 77% 7% 13% 3% 81% Average SAT Scores Current Overall Percent Tested 100% 99% 99% 100% 100% Critical Reading Mathematics Writing Essay Post Graduation Class of 2011 Class of 2012 Class of 2013 Class of 2014 Class of 2015 A-G Requirements for the University of California Percentage of Senior Class Graduates 98% 92% 95% 99% 99% 90% 95% 95% 93% 93.5% Post Graduation Class of 2011 Class of 2012 Class of 2013 Class of 2014 Class of 2015 Graduates (A-G eligible) accepted into 4-Year University/College 93% 85% 92% 92% 96% 1

2 Post Graduation Class of 2011 Class of 2012 Class of 2013 Class of 2014 Class of 2015 Private College Public College Community College Trade/Technical School Advanced Placement & Community College AP Class (6 course offerings) Concurrent College Awards & Accolades 31% 23% 20% 24% 26.7% 22% 30% 39% 43% 41.6% 46% 45% 41% 29% 31.7% N/A N/A N/A 4% N/A U.S. News & World Report Ranked in top 3% of Public High Schools in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report. National Green Ribbon Schools Award Inaugural recipient of National Green Ribbon Schools Award from the Department of Education & President Obama. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency Award for working to protect public health & the environment. Partner School with The Nature Conservancy LEAF is an ambitious effort to empower the next generation of conservation leaders. LEAF provides paid summer internships for partner school students in natural areas across country. Featured in PBS Documentary Growing Greener Schools as a prime model for green education. President Obama Commencement Challenge ECHS was selected as 1 of 6 finalists in President Obama s Commencement Challenge. Green Leadership Award rom the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for developing & employing innovative strategies & initiatives to enhance our environmental sustainability. California Department of Education Service-Learning Leaders Schools Award from the California Department of Education for servicelearning excellence & program sustainability. 2

3 College Acceptances for our Alumni Our students are bold, collaborative and creative contributors. They will eagerly pursue opportunities all over the world in order to make a difference. Our students have been admitted to these fine academic institutions: Arizona State University** Bates College** Bethune-Cookman University** Boston College Brown University** Bryn Mawr College** Bucknell University** California Polytechnic University Pomona** California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo California State University, Bakersfield California State University, Channel Islands** California State University, Chico California State University, Dominguez Hills** California State University, East Bay** California State University, Fresno California State University, Humboldt** California State University, Long Beach** California State University, Los Angeles** California State University, Monterey Bay** California State University, Northridge** California State University, San Bernardino California State University, San Diego** California State University, San Francisco** California State University, San Jose** Carleton College Chapman University Clark Atlanta University Colby College College of St. Benedict Connecticut College Dartmouth College** Davidson College Dickinson College** Drexel University Duke University Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising** Florida Tech University Florida A&M University Franklin & Marshall College** Hampshire College** Hampton University Harvard University** Haverford College Howard University** Illinois Institute of Technology Kalamazoo College** Lewis & Clark University Loyola Marymount University** Manhattanville College Marymount College Middlebury College** Mills College** Morehouse College Mount Holyoke University** Northern Arizona University** Oberlin College Occidental College** Otis College** Pepperdine University** Pitzer College Pomona College** Prescott College** Rochester Institute of Technology Santa Clara University St. Olaf College Scripps College Smith College** Spelman College** Swarthmore College Syracuse University** Tufts University Tuskegee University University of Alaska University of California Berkeley** University of California Davis** University of California Irvine** University of California Los Angeles** University of California, Merced** University of California Riverside** University of California Santa Barbara** University of California Santa Cruz** University of California San Diego** University of Oregon University of Pennsylvania** University of Puget Sound** University of Richmond** University of Southern California University of San Francisco** University of Tampa University of the Pacific University of Wisconsin Stevens Point** Vassar College** Wake Forest University** Wellesley College** Wheaton College (Mass)** Whitman College Whittier College** Williams College** Willamette University **denotes schools where ECHS alumni are attending &/or from where they have graduated. 3

4 ECHS We are on a system & then convert this score into a percentage grade for the report card & then a letter grade for the transcript. We are aiming for proficiency & beyond. On the transcript, we have As, Bs, Cs & Fs. There are no Ds at ECHS. Proficiency Scale What the Grade Means Gradebook Percentage 4 In addition to the proficiency mark of 3.0, student makes in-depth inferences & applications & can provide a written or verbal explanation & can create their own examples 3 Students has mastered the standard that was explicitly taught. This is the proficiency mark & represents significant academic achievement. 2 There are no major errors or omissions regarding the simpler details & processes. Students have partially mastered the standard. 1 With help, a partial understanding of some of the simpler details & processes & some of the more complex ideas & processes. Student s performance is limited. GPA Distribution % of Class of % 28.20% 27.35% 11.96% 2.56% Above & Beyond As part of the graduation requirements at Environmental Charter High School, seniors are expected to complete the Senior Thesis Project which allows ECHS educators to assess a broad range of the academic skills of graduating candidates to determine if these students have gained the skills necessary to prepare a competent, articulate academic work. Within specific guidelines, students will research a topic of their own choosing. The topics must a) directly address the prompt below by discussing a current environmental or social injustice in the world; b) be relevant to the local community; c) consider research findings that will be shared with the community in a beneficial manner Prompt: What current environmental &/or social injustice do you see in the world that affects you & your community? How can you address that injustice & use your own personal power to create civic action that will help others facing the same issue? Thesis components: Written Essay of Findings & Defense to Panel The written component of the Senior Thesis is an 8-page college-level essay that presents the topic, the thesis, and the findings of the student s research. Students must submit an annotated bibliography prior to the final paper. Service Learning Project Over the course of the spring semester, students will perform a minimum of 20 hours on a self-designed service learning project which utilizes their written research to create civic action for change on their issue. Culminating Presentation In June, to a panel of teachers, community members, and students from different grade-levels, each senior will, in a multimedia presentation, defend his/her paper and analyze the effectiveness of the experience and the work they have done on their Service Learning Project. Intersession Our students are taught to solve real world issues through the lens of different subjects and disciplines. Standards are linked between teachers and subjects making them relevant for students as they question, investigate, construct meaning, discover relationships, and solve problems. Every January, ECHS students spend the month working in interdisciplinary grade-level teams to wrestle with the following essential questions (2015): 9th grade-- What makes a quality community? 10th grade-- What is the value of change? 11th grade-- Whose truths do you live by? 12th grade-- Why does my community need me? Students receive two scores--one for the project and one for the interdisciplinary unit exam at the end of January to be averaged out to an A, B, C or an F. A massive community forum is hosted by the school where students present, advocate, debate and share their big ideas. Community Service As part of ECHS mission to create critical reasoners, collaborative communicators and creative contributors, each student must complete 80 total hours of community service throughout their high school tenure. Many students go far beyond the requirement. College Admissions Every senior graduates with a diploma that meets California s A-G requirements for college admissions. Every student completes at least 1 application for a California public university and an application for a private college/university. It s the expectation that each student will get accepted to at least one of school from their list. 100% 85% 65% 50% 4

5 Beyond the Walls Our students spend quality time expanding their education beyond the classroom walls through rich collaborations with partners & community members--whether through class projects &/or internships. Contacts The Nature Conservancy Natural Resource Defense Council From Lot to Spot Heal the Bay West Basin Water District Surfrider Foundation LA Conservation Corps U.S. Green Building Council Green Ambassadors Institute Pacific Crest Trail Association Sea Lab Algalita Marine Research Institute Mandy Breuer, M.A., P.P.S., Principal Katherine C. Villoria, M.A., Assistant Principal Lucia Banuelos, M.A., P.P.S., School Counselor Rossa Doño-Ramirez, M.A., P.P.S., School Counselor Lacey D. Harris, M.A., P.P.S., School Counselor Trash for Teaching Catalina Environmental Leadership Program Beach City Cycles Student Climate & Conservation Congress Youth Justice Coalition YMCA Richstone Family Center South Bay LGBT Center Common Vision Ghetto Film School Woodcraft Rangers Boojum Institute for Experiential Education College Match Los Angeles CSU Long Beach School of Engineering The Posse Foundation SpaceX Northrop Grumman Mattel JAMAH Academy of Business Leadership Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship Mailing address: Grevillea Ave Lawndale, CA Ph: , Fx: