School Sites - High Schools
El Dorado
El Dorado offers many challenging classes, fine and performing arts, and a full athletic program to its GATE students, and many of them try to balance their schedules to take advantage of these opportunities. The senior project, a requirement for all students, requires that students learn to interact with professional adults, meet deadlines and time schedules, and hone their interviewing skills.
Some of El Dorado’s graduates are currently at Stanford, Pomona College, Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, and M.I.T. One of our graduates, Michael Steinberger, our Hawk of the Year in 1995, will earn his PhD at M.I.T. this summer and has been hired as a professor at Pomona College to teach economics. Alyssa Tonelli will be attending Stanford this fall; Amanda Watkins will be attending Harvard.
Recognition programs are in place to honor our current GATE students. On April 26, 2006, 157 GATE students were recognized for either being Collegiate Scholars or Distinguished Scholars or both and were treated to cookies by the PTSA.
Esperanza
Principal Dave Flynn sends greetings to all of our GATE families.
Esperanza offers a full range of activities for the accelerated student. Esperanza is proud that we are a superior school ranked 64th in the state… including magnet schools! We boast an API score of 769 for all students in our school ...800 is a perfect score! Students can also participate in a full range of Performing Arts activities as well as a nationally ranked athletic program. We challenge our GATE students with honors and AP courses. We are proud of the fact that our 10-year pass rate on AP Exams is over 80%.
Language Arts
9th grade Honors-The students study myths from their own culture.
Language Arts III Honors - The students study American authors focusing on Native American and women authors.
AP Language Arts- Activities include limericks, poem recitation, favorite poem projects and analyzing novels and short stories.
Foreign Language
Foreign Language Class (French, German, Japanese, and Spanish) activities range from very traditional to cultural project research. The German students in conjunction with The Trans-Atlantic Soccer Bridge, received an all expense paid trip to Germany for two weeks this past summer.
Performing Arts
The Performing Arts groups are among the most active on campus. High achieving academians have the opportunity to participate in seven instrumental groups, two orchestras, colorguard, vocal music, theater productions and beautiful works of art. GATE students will have the opportunity to participate in The Fiesta Bowl next year.
Math
Many of our freshmen GATE students are enrolled in Geometry and Honors Algebra II/Trig. The GATE students step-up to the challenge of working complex equations about asymptotes, limits and anti-derivatives. The GATE students are ecstatic about the games of probability that tie the relevancy to the gaming world of Las Vegas.
Social Science
The AP European History class is an opportunity for our very youngest students to get their first experience at taking an AP course. Group debates increase the ability of students to develop persuasive arguments. AP History studies industrialization and its impact on American life and foreign policy. In AP Government students participate in identifying with a political party. In AP Economics they learn stock games and track imaginary stock portfolios.
Science
The biology students work on dating objects. The GATE students participate in a forensics unit. In AP Biology the equipment enhances the labs. Honors Chemistry is dealing with thermo chemistry, stoichiometry, and gas laws. In AP Chemistry the reaction labs are new. IMMEX, the joint software project with Esperanza’s Dr. Sprang and UCLA, is also a part of the students’ curriculum. Their labs include “cooking” hotdogs followed by a picnic! Another favorite is the bottle rocket lab.
Activities
GATE students are also involved in many activities. They volunteer hundreds of hours.
Athletics
Members of GATE are also athletes and have been very successful.
The principal wishes to thank the parents for sending us your child every day. Continue to praise and applaud your student’s efforts at home.
Valencia
GATE students at Valencia High School are eligible to participate in three specialized programs not available at other high schools in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District. They include the International Baccalaureate program, the Val Tech program and GATE Independent Research.
Students selected for the International Baccalaureate Program complete an intense course of study that includes a special course in Theory of Knowledge, a 4,000-word essay on a subject of each student's special interest and six internationally graded examinations from Language Arts, Foreign Language, Individuals and Society, Experimental Sciences, Mathematics and Arts and Electives.
Additionally, students must participate in a variety of extracurricular Creativity, Action and Service activities. While each IB diploma candidate pursues an individualized program, students share an academic experience that emphasizes critical thinking, intercultural understanding and personal growth.
The Val Tech program is for students with special interest and aptitude for technology. The program requires 240 credits for graduation, including a minimum of 50 credits in technology from such pathways as Arts and Communications, Business and Computer Science and Science and Technology (Engineering).
A 150-hour internship during the summer between the junior and senior year or during the senior year culminates in a research project and presentation. Information about the International Baccalaureate program is available by contacting Assistant Principal Jim Bell or the IB Coordinator, Fred Jenkins. Information about the Val Tech program is available by contacting Jim Bell or Val Tech Coordinator, Mike Guest.
On a voluntary basis GATE students may also participate in the GATE Independent Study program and earn from one to five credits of "A" each grading period.
Valencia High School (714-996-4970) contact persons:
| Jim Bell | Assistant Principal | ext. 3204 | jbell@pylusd.k12.ca.us |
| Fred Jenkins | International Baccalaureate Coordinator | ext. 3218 | fjenkins@pylusd.k12.ca.us |
| Mike Guest | Val Tech Coordinator | ext. 3220 | mguest@pylusd.k12.ca.us |
| Kay Kerby | Independent Study/GATE Coordinator | kkerby@pylusd.k12.ca.us |