In the largest event of its kind to date, HTH Learning
hosted over 150 educators from 33 organizations at the fourth annual HTH
Summer Institute, held June
20-June 22, 2005 at High Tech High International. The event featured a
range of sessions including "job-alikes," workshops, conversations
in the "Open Space" format, and social gatherings including
a wine and cheese reception and an authentic Hawaiian barbeque. Plenary
addresses included remarks from Jed Wallace and Rob Riordan and an open
mic-style Q&A session with Larry Rosenstock.
In addition to presentations and workshops by High Tech High "veteran"
teachers, colleagues from the network offered informative and valuable
sessions. Gayle Britt of HTH Bayshore presented a workshop on "The
Silk Road," an interdisciplinary project for middle school students
that addresses history, geography, and art by studying trade routes in
the Orient. Carrie Brennan, Director of City High School in Tucson, offered
a thought-provoking session entitled "Working Toward a School-Wide
Approach with Habits of Heart and Mind," reflecting her schools'
efforts to incorporate habits such as reflection and inquiry into all
aspects of teacher and student work. Faculty from the New Bedford Global
Learning Charter School addressed the issues of "Interdisciplinary
Projects, Frameworks, and
Curricular Differentiation," discussing some of the successes and
challenges they have faced as they deepen their work with project-based
learning. And reflective of their state context, where students must pass
a "Certificate of Initial Mastery" to earn a high school diploma,
our colleagues from New Urban High School in Clackamas, Oregon led a session
on "Teaching Standards to Mastery."
Participant feedback indicates that the Institute was a great success.
Indeed, the most often cited criticism of the two and a half day agenda
was that there were too many workshop sessions that participants wanted
to attend. School teams appreciated the time set aside for planning and
reflection and used the opportunity as an end-of-the-year retreat. Perhaps
most important, there were numerous opportunities for network colleagues
to learn from each other and make connections with like-minded education
practitioners from all over the country. We hope you can join us for next
year's Summer Institute, which promises to be even bigger and better!
2. New
Mexico Governor and University Delegation Visit HTH
On May 31, 2005, High Tech High hosted Governor Bill Richardson and a
delegation of New Mexico government and university officials at the HTH
campus in San Diego. The visitors included University of New Mexico President
Louis Caldera, Dean of the UNM College of Education Viola Florez, and
President Caldera's Chief of Staff, Connie Beimer. Led by Robin Troup,
director of HTH Albuquerque and members of that school's Board of Trustees,
the group met with Larry Rosenstock, CEO of HTH, Jed Wallace, COO, and
Jennifer Husbands, Director of Site Support to discuss plans for building
a community of HTH-modeled schools in partnership with the University
of New Mexico. The visitors also participated
in a conference call with HTH Learning's Director of Design, David Stephen,
to discuss architectural specifications for HTH school facilities. Throughout,
Governor Richardson took a leading role in the conversations, asking probing
questions about the feasibility of adopting the High Tech High design
to serve a significant number of students in New Mexico.
The first High Tech High in New Mexico, High Tech High Albuquerque (HTH
ABQ), will open this fall serving 90-9th grade students. HTH Learning,
HTH ABQ, and representatives from the President's Office, the College
of Education, the College of Engineering, and the Department of Facilities
at the University of New Mexico are working with the Governor's office
to plan additional High Tech High campuses in New Mexico. For more information
about HTH Albuquerque, please visit www.hthabq.org.
HTH has announced the publication of a second sensational field guide,
Perspectives of
San Diego Bay. Written and published by 56 HTH juniors under the supervision
of the
teaching team of Dr. Jay Vavra (biology), Rod Buenviaje (math) and Tom
Fehrenbacher, the
guide offers a comprehensive look at the bay from a variety of perspectives.
It follows upon
last year's acclaimed The Two Sides of the Boat Channel: a Field Guide.
The result of a semester-long study involving nine trips to the Bay during
school hours, calibrated to the tides, the Field Guide contains a comprehensive
biodiversity survey of fauna in the Bay, along with studies of its history
and geography. As such, it offers an exemplary case of curriculum integration
in the High Tech High way, tapping and developing a broad range of understandings
and skills in biology, math, and
the humanities. The Guide has drawn praise from a variety of readers,
including Dr. George Schaller and other prominent biologists and geographers.
Thomas Hayden, Senior Writer for US News & World Report, writes:
This remarkable field guide…deftly combines scientific observation
with human attachment in a way that is rare even amongst seasoned professionals.
The scientific components are as good as any I've seen, while the poems
and personal reflections on nature, science and place help to bring the
San Diego Bay area alive. Taken together, they capture the essence of
not just a region, but of the deep connections between nature, science
and humanity.
Dr. Vavra and several HTH students presented their work in July to 13,000
attendees at the 25th Annual ESRI GIS Users Conference in San Diego, and
were interviewed on a local TV newscast. The project is featured on the
What Kids Can Do web site, which offers an interview with Dr. Vavra, reflections
by the students, and a downloadable version of the guide at http://www.whatkidscando.org/studentresearch/2005hightechtemp.html.
The guide is being published, with a foreword by Dr. Jane Goodall, by
Next Generation Press and will appear in San Diego museums, aquarium shops,
tourist shops and bookstores by November 2005. It will also be available
directly through High Tech High: contact Dr. Jay Vavra at jvavra@hightechhigh.org.
There will soon be a special web site as well: www.sandiegobay.net.
Congratulations to the Vavra-Buenviaje-Fehrenbacher team
High Tech High Learning has announced plans to open schools in Texas in
collaboration with representatives of the Texas High School Project and
the Governor. The first two schools,
a middle school and a high school, will open in Austin in the fall of
2006. When these first schools grow to full enrollment and meet the quality
expectations of High Tech High, additional schools will open in Austin,
with eventual expansion into other major metropolitan areas in Texas.
HTHL has enjoyed a significant local and statewide support for the effort
to establish new schools in Austin. Representatives of High Tech High
met with Pascal Forgione, Superintendent of Austin Independent School
District (AISD), and discussed with him opportunities for partnership
between HTH and the school district. Similarly productive meetings were
held with representatives of the Texas Education Agency and the Michael
and Susan Dell Foundation. In addition, numerous business leaders from
the Austin community have stepped forward to offer support to the development
of the school’s future academic internship program. Other community
leaders have expressed an interest in serving on a local advisory board,
to be established in the coming months. HTHL is now engaged in assembling
the cadre of “Mitochondria” school directors and lead teachers
to receive a year of training at HTH-San Diego before returning to staff
the startup schools in Austin. A Regional Director for Texas will oversee
the effort to establish a statewide presence there, working to ensure
that HTHL’s Texas schools receive the same comprehensive level of
support as other schools within the HTH charter management organization.
Next steps include locating a facility for renovation to meet the architectural
design specifications of HTH schools, developing a charter school proposal
for consideration by AISD and beginning outreach to Austin parents and
students about the unique services provided by High Tech High schools
High Tech High Learning has announced a full slate of professional development
offerings for the 2005-06 school year. Here is the schedule, with a brief
description of each event. Mark your calendar now! Fall Residency: October 19-21, 2005 This event will be
tailored for teachers and school staff who are new to the High Tech High
world. Participants will visit HTH classes, talk with teachers and students,
and engage in structured conversations about the HTH design principles,
project-based learning, and curriculum integration. Internship and College Advising Institute: Nov. 30 - Dec. 2, 2005
Primarily designed for internship coordinators and college advisors, this
institute is highlighted by the annual Internship Exhibition, where HTH
students display and discuss their current internship projects. Winter Residency: Feb. 1-3, 2006 This residency focuses
on Presentations of Learning and other forms of assessment at HTH schools.
New and returning teachers will be paired with HTH hosts and will have
ample opportunities to observe classrooms and interact with HTH students,
teachers, and administrators. Ambassador Site Visits: March 27 - April 7, 2006 HTH
Ambassadors will travel to their assigned HTH network sites during the
HTH Spring Break, with precise times to be arranged in each case. Summer Institute: June 28-30, 2006 In this, our largest
event, practitioners, school leaders, community partners, and small school
advocates from across the country come to San Diego to learn about HTH
principles and practices, engage in strategic planning, and network with
like minded colleagues.
Additional Opportunities In addition to the network events listed above,
interested parties are invited to participate in other important events
at HTH as listed below (exact dates to be determined-stay tuned!). Presentations
of Learning, mid- to late January 2006 In these end-of term presentations,
organized differently at the different HTH schools, students present and
reflect on their learning over the first half of the year. HTH Village Exhibition, mid-March 2006 In this evening
extravaganza, open to the public, the HTH schools exhibit their work in
a dizzying array of creative formats. Past exhibitions have included a
World War I era restaurant and cabaret, an art gallery, a museum-like
exhibit on the history and physics of baseball, simulations of faraway
ecologies, and many other thought-provoking and educational displays. Transitional Presentations of Learning, mid- to late June 2006
In these presentations to faculty and community panels, students offer
evidence from their digital portfolios to demonstrate their readiness
to proceed to the next grade level.
For further information:
Contact Simi Bumia at 619 243-5029 or sbumia@hightechhigh.org
June
20-June 22, 2005 at High Tech High International. The event featured a
range of sessions including "job-alikes," workshops, conversations
in the "Open Space" format, and social gatherings including
a wine and cheese reception and an authentic Hawaiian barbeque. Plenary
addresses included remarks from Jed Wallace and Rob Riordan and an open
mic-style Q&A session with Larry Rosenstock.
Curricular Differentiation," discussing some of the successes and
challenges they have faced as they deepen their work with project-based
learning. And reflective of their state context, where students must pass
a "Certificate of Initial Mastery" to earn a high school diploma,
our colleagues from New Urban High School in Clackamas, Oregon led a session
on "Teaching Standards to Mastery."
participated
in a conference call with HTH Learning's Director of Design, David Stephen,
to discuss architectural specifications for HTH school facilities. Throughout,
Governor Richardson took a leading role in the conversations, asking probing
questions about the feasibility of adopting the High Tech High design
to serve a significant number of students in New Mexico. 
and
the humanities. The Guide has drawn praise from a variety of readers,
including Dr. George Schaller and other prominent biologists and geographers.
Thomas Hayden, Senior Writer for US News & World Report, writes:
a middle school and a high school, will open in Austin in the fall of
2006. When these first schools grow to full enrollment and meet the quality
expectations of High Tech High, additional schools will open in Austin,
with eventual expansion into other major metropolitan areas in Texas.
HTHL has enjoyed a significant local and statewide support for the effort
to establish new schools in Austin. Representatives of High Tech High
met with Pascal Forgione, Superintendent of Austin Independent School
District (AISD), and discussed with him opportunities for partnership
between HTH and the school district. Similarly productive meetings were
held with representatives of the Texas Education Agency and the Michael
and Susan Dell Foundation. In addition, numerous business leaders from
the Austin community have stepped forward to offer support to the development
of the school’s future academic internship program. Other community
leaders have expressed an interest in serving on a local advisory board,
to be established in the coming months. HTHL is now engaged in assembling
the cadre of “Mitochondria” school directors and lead teachers
to receive a year of training at HTH-San Diego before returning to staff
the startup schools in Austin. A Regional Director for Texas will oversee
the effort to establish a statewide presence there, working to ensure
that HTHL’s Texas schools receive the same comprehensive level of
support as other schools within the HTH charter management organization.
Next steps include locating a facility for renovation to meet the architectural
design specifications of HTH schools, developing a charter school proposal
for consideration by AISD and beginning outreach to Austin parents and
students about the unique services provided by High Tech High schools
description of each event. Mark your calendar now!