Monache High School's Environmental Science Academy, ESA, Pathway has been awarded NAF’s Katherine Blasik Distinguished level recognition — NAF’s highest level of achievement.
Academies who have received the honor include those who have received it more than once and those receiving it for the first time.
“Achieving the Distinguished Academy status means that our students, teachers and business partners are working at the highest level to bring environmental science education into the classroom and into our community,” ESA Pathway lead teacher John Sherrill said.
“Our students are by far what I am most proud of. I truly believe that the culture of ESL is that of a family. From freshmen to seniors, I've seen students working to bring positive change to our school sites, our cities and even to global leadership.”
The Distinguished designation is given to a select few who have reached Model level on NAF’s annual assessment, demonstrating a design that prepares students for success in college and careers. Model level is determined by an academy’s score on the assessment, which measures strengths and challenges in implementing NAF’s results driven design, followed by a virtual academy. A number of high performing academies meet additional thresholds to reach Katherine Blasik Distinguished level.
The assessment is designed to help all academies assess their progress and to meet NAF’s standards.
“ESA is a great example of how education can transform the lives of students when teachers and industry partners work together,” Porterville Unified School District Director of Pathways Cynthia Brown said.
“Teachers and our community partners continue to make a difference in the lives of our students. Regardless of the Pathway or industry every student can benefit from being in a Pathway.”
In the classroom, NAF goes beyond what traditional career and technical education programs offer with experiential learning activities that complement career-focused curricula. Outside the classroom, students are equipped with the future-ready skills and industry-specific learnings to be successful in any pathway they choose.
“Congratulations to all our Katherine Blasik Distinguished and NAF Model academies and a special welcome to our academies joining the roster for the first time,” NAF Chief Executive Officer Lisa Dughi said. “Your hard work, strong commitment, and proven contributions to student success are an outstanding example to the rest of the NAF network. We applaud you and thank you for everything that you do both today and to build a better future.”
Monache ESA students regularly participate in outdoor labs with applications to real world settings. Students learn how human activity impacts the environment.
They undergo project-based learning in the fields of environmental science, natural resource management, energy science and complete a senior project to serve the community.
Students are involved with wildlife habitat restoration projects, energy efficient audits and improvements, landscaping with native, drought tolerant plans, biodiversity research, a campus recycling program, job shadowing and internships and state and national competitions.
The ESA program of student is ESA I: Intro to Environmental Science for ninth graders; ESA II: Natural Resources for 10th graders; ESA III: Energy Science for 11th graders; ESA IV: an internship which qualifies for two units of college credits; and UC approved core courses.
ESA is part of NAF, formerly known as the National Academy Foundation, a national education non-profit that brings schools and businesses together to better prepare students of all backgrounds. For more information visit www.naf.org
PUSD now has 10 Distinguished recognized programs. Other Pathways to be honored with Distinguished status are Granite Hills Advanced Career Education, ACE and Academy of Law, Justice and Ethics; Harmony Magnet Academy's Academy of Engineering and Academy of Performing Arts; Porterville High's Academy of Health Sciences. Partnership Academy of Business and Finance and Academy of Energy and Resource Occupations, AERO; Strathmore High's Academy of Emerging Agricultural Technology; and Monache's Multimedia and Technology, MTA, Pathway.
PUSD currently has half of the Distinguished academies in the state as there are 20 Distinguished academies in California.
Each PUSD Pathway must continue to meet standards set for by NAF on an annual basis.
To learn more about PUSD's 14 Open-Choice Pathways visit www.pathways.portervilleschools.org