|
Excelsior Education Center is an accredited and State-funded charter school. “Accredited”
means that virtually every university will recognize our diploma. “State-funded”
means that there is no tuition requirement to attend Excelsior Education Center
and textbooks are supplied free of charge for the length of the course of study
provided the textbooks are returned when the course of study is completed or upon
withdrawal from our program. To the top
Our program is a self-directed learning "home-study" program. “Self-directed”
means that each student will have a learning plan that is customized for his or
her own individual needs. “Home study” means that the home is considered
the primary classroom and the parent or guardian is considered the primary teacher.
Once the student is enrolled, they will be assigned to a credentialed staff member
whom we refer to as a facilitator. This person will facilitate the learning process
for the student and the parent or guardian, being the point of contact for any
problems that may arise, any assistance needed, overseeing the progress that is
being achieved and ensuring proper pace is maintained. The facilitator is also
the person with whom the student and parent or guardian commit to meeting as a
team at least twice a month for appointments (or more often if needed). Every
effort will be made by the facilitator to accommodate your busy schedule as much
as possible. To the top
Being the primary teacher does not mean that the parent or guardian must be an
academic genius. The parent or guardian is provided with the answer keys for each
subject. If the parent or guardian feels they cannot adequately assist the student,
the facilitator should be contacted. The facilitator can arrange for tutoring
or lab time for the student. We offer math, reading and science labs for which
the student can be signed up by the facilitator.
Our seventh and eighth graders attend what we call our Prep Academy. This is our
junior high campus and is considered a preparation for high school, thus the name
Prep Academy.
Our ninth through twelfth graders will attend our Main Campus, which is divided
up into five career-oriented academies, which are Art, Business, Social Science,
Science and Technical. These students will be required to select the academy upon
enrollment that most closely matches the area of the work force they would like
to enter upon graduation. Within each academy there are what we refer to as Specialties,
which focus on a specific type of career within the chosen academy. For example,
if the student is interested in photography, this is a specialty offered within
the Art Academy; if the student is interested in construction, they would find
this specialty within the Technical Academy, and so on. To the top
Unless the student signs up for on-campus classes (which will be discussed below),
all of the schooling will be done at home with the following exceptions: on campus
testing will be done for unit tests and finals at the end of the semester, also
STAR testing and California High School Exit Exams will be done off site. You
will be notified of the locations, dates and times when those tests will be done.
The student may also have the option of signing up for on-campus classes. However,
if the date of entry into our program is well into the present semester, on-campus
courses will not be an option until the new semester begins. On-campus courses
are offered Tuesday through Friday. The class schedule depends on the workshops
selected and signed up for by the student, so schedules will vary from student
to student. Excelsior does not provide transportation so arrangements will need
to be made or city transit is also available. To the top
In most cases, the student will also have the opportunity to concurrently enroll
at the community college provided the criterion is met. Regarding this endeavor,
we recommend that the student be enrolled at Excelsior at least one semester before
taking on the challenge of college, and then to begin only with electives. Starting
with electives provides the student a slightly less stressful opportunity to get
their feet wet with the new college environment to see if it will be a good fit
for them. This depends greatly on the student’s level of maturity, self-discipline
and self-control. Facilitators or Excelsior’s college coordinator can provide
more information. To the top
In order to achieve the utmost success with our program, the student must be committed
to achievement, self-motivated, self-controlled, have respect for the parental/guardian
role as the primary teacher, and make sure their work is done with integrity and
turned in every week by 8 a.m. Monday morning. The parent or guardian must be
committed to their student’s education, overseeing the student’s studies,
grading the work, attending every meeting with the facilitator or appointing a
designee to go in their stead. Also, both must be committed to good communication
between teacher and student, and within the education team of student, parent
or guardian and facilitator. To the top
Excelsior Education Center is a school of choice and, provided the student has
the ability and self-discipline to utilize this program to its fullest potential,
can assist students in making up credits if they have fallen behind in their education.
However, it is not a school to be used solely to make-up credits and then return
to the previous school. This is not conducive to positive learning practices and
is not beneficial to the student; therefore, it is strongly discouraged. To the top
Excelsior Education Center offers a wide variety of traditional sports opportunities
from which to choose. For the male students, we have baseball, basketball and
football. For the female students, we have softball, basketball and volleyball.
For both genders, we have bowling, cross-country, and golf. We also have a ski
club during the winter months and other clubs may become available. To the top
Excelsior Education Center has special education services for students
that are currently enrolled. Each Academy has a special education facilitator
to assist students in that academy. For more information please call Linda Goodman
at extension 289 or Marie Silva at extension 254. The following is a list of Excelsior
staff members who are apart of the Excelsior's Special Education Services:
Marie Silva, Special Education Coordinator, Ext. 254, Room 2
Jan Meyers, Special Education Facilitator - Arts/Science, Ext.349, Room 14
Kasey Shockley, Special Education Facilitator - Technical/Barstow, Ext.291, Room 1
Kacy Banuelos, Special Education Facilitator - Business/Social Services, Ext.245, Room 1
Linda Goodman, Special Education Office Assistants, Ext. 289, Room 2
To the top |
