Students in the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District are demanding more communication and support when it comes to completing courses required to qualify for a four-year university, with district data indicating particularly low completion rates among English learners, low-income students and students of color.
While the district requires students to complete a certain set of courses with at least a D grade in order to graduate, the CSU and UC systems list a slightly different set of courses that students must pass with at least a C to qualify for one of their four-year universities, known as A-G requirements.
A-G courses include four years of English, three years of math, two years each of history, laboratory science and a foreign language, and one year each of a college prep elective and performing or visual arts.
During an Education Justice Conference on Wednesday outside the former Santa Maria Valley Railroad headquarters, several students claimed that while they are informed about A-G requirements early in their freshman year, there is a lack of accountability to ensure they take and pass those courses.
"They go through the stress and the pain when they find out, more than halfway done with junior year of high school, that they won't be able to apply to the colleges that they wanted to because they didn't complete the required years of, say, math or English," said Pioneer Valley senior Jessica Rodriguez.
According to California Department of Education data, 35% of graduating students in the district met A-G requirements at the end of the 2019-20 school year, compared to 50% statewide. However, the district did see an increase from previous years, with a rate of 24% in 2018 and 29% in 2019.
As of 2020, 8% of the district's Black graduates met A-G requirements, along with 34% of Latinx students and 36% of White students. Racial groups with the highest completion rates included Asian students at 53% and Filipino students at 60%.
"The data is pretty sobering," said district Superintendent Antonio Garcia. "Every year, for the past three years, there has been progress for most of those student groups, but clearly, we also have a long way to go for most of our students."
Data further indicates that 32% of low-income graduates met requirements, along with 12% of emergent bilingual graduates and 20% of unhoused graduates, all falling below the district average.
A list of demands shared by students in youth organization Future Leaders of America included that the district align graduation and A-G requirements, so all graduates will be eligible for a four-year university. While both systems require four years of English, the district requires just two years of math and one year of history, out of step with the A-G schedule.
FLA members also demanded more academic and culturally informed support services, opportunities for parent involvement in Spanish and Indigenous languages, and partnerships with Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara.
Ray Ramos, a international student at Righetti High School, said he did not question the classes he was placed into as a freshman until he was applying for colleges last year, and realized how few A-G requirements he had fulfilled.
"Last year, I took 10 classes including community college classes, APs, independent study and a class at another high school to be able to make up some credits. Without me noticing, I definitely couldn’t apply to college," Ramos said.
Garcia responded to some of the concerns stated by students and shared solutions the district is implementing to raise completion rates.
He noted that the highest areas of need are in math and English, and that at least half of the district's incoming ninth graders have been entering high schools with math and English skills below the sixth-grade level.
"We have too many students, because of all of this, not reaching Algebra 2 by their senior year. In order to be A-G eligible, you need to not only take three years of math but that third year of math has to be Algebra 2," he said.
To address such issues, he said the district is working with its K-8 feeder schools from the Santa Maria-Bonita, Guadalupe Union, Blochman Union and Orcutt Union districts to ensure students are prepared to succeed in high school.
The district also recently completed a survey about student's knowledge and awareness of A-G requirements, to which nearly one-third of students responded, and resources for academic and mental health counseling are being increased, he said.
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November 13, 2021 at 12:00PM
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Santa Maria high schoolers demand increased support for A-G course completion - Santa Maria Times
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