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PAST MESSAGES FROM THE PRESIDENT

"Driving Success"
School-Community Partnerships are Key to Success
By Kevin Clayborn, Governing Board President

Fall 2003 - We of the Glendale Union High School District firmly believe that ALL students can learn and be successful. We are proud of the strong community support and involvement in our schools, and we continue to work toward developing even stronger ties with business and civic groups.

School-Community partnerships are key to our Driving Success. Each of our high schools has local businesses and civic organizations that work together with staff to help students learn and be successful. We appreciate the added incentives that are provided by businesses to students who have performed well in school or outside activities.

One of the great strengths in our curriculum is our series of authentic school-business partnerships that have resulted in the opening of viable career pathways for our students. These partnerships focus on providing students with hands-on experience in careers that are in high demand. The programs lead to industry certification and employment in entry-level positions such as computer networking technicians, certified
nursing assistants and automotive technicians; along with jobs in culinary arts, fire science and construction trades. Participating students are often eligible to receive college credit while still in high school through dual enrollment agreements. We continue to work with business and industry to expand our offerings.

We are gratified to learn that many of our graduates have already begun rewarding careers as a direct result of our partnership programs. These young adults are continuing their education while on the job and many are having their college classes financed by their new employers. The benefits are many. Our business partners are gaining a new labor pool of well-educated and locally trained employees from our community. Our students get an early start on rewarding careers. Our community, in turn, benefits from a new generation of productive members ready to meet the 'Choices and Challenges of the Twenty-First Century.'

We welcome your comments as we expand learning opportunities for our students.

State of Glendale Union (2002-2003)

Our mission is to provide students with the best education possible to prepare them for the choices and challenges of the twenty-first century. We have achieved much, and we continue to improve.

Each high school in the district had four goals to address in 2001-2002. I am pleased to report that all nine of our high schools, the Metrocenter Academy and Northern Annex met their goals.

PERFORMANCE GOAL: Student Achievement
The Student Achievement Index for each high school increased from one to five percentage points. District scores showed improvement in 81% of the tested areas, compared to 68% last year.

Collectively, throughout the district, our Stanford 9 national achievement test scores increased by six percent. In the state mandated AIMS test, ninety-four percent of last year’s seniors were successful in Writing. Eighty-eight were successful in Reading. Forty-three percent were successful in math. This is a significant gain over the previous year.

Success on AIMS is required for graduation beginning with the class of 2006. Our students will be ready.

PERFORMANCE GOAL: Drop Out Rate
Our drop out rate is a low 3.9%, compared to the state average of 12.2%. Our teachers provide instruction in time management and study skills to get students back on track for school success.

PERFORMANCE GOAL: Parent Satisfaction
Each spring we survey parents by phone to determine the extent of their satisfaction with their child’s school. Results show that ninety-three percent of GUHSD parents are satisfied.

PERFORMANCE GOAL: Local School Goals
In 2001-2002, school staff and community planning teams determined what area(s) they wanted to research and improve upon at the local schools. Research provides valuable data for planning and decision making and provides a basis for future community discussions and continual improvement.

As a district, we believe in our hearts and minds that ALL students can learn. Our teachers put this belief into practice. With parent and teacher support and encouragement, students continue to be successful as they grow in confidence and self esteem.

The keys to Glendale Union’s success are education, training and collaboration. The Governing Board’s mission is that we continue to improve the quality of our learning system and demonstrate the consistent caring for children that is the hallmark of the Glendale Union High School District.