When I decided to become a teacher my reasons were simple, I wanted to help kids learn mathematics and do it in a fun way.  I wanted to teach math differently than I had been taught, and I knew I could do that.  The interesting thing is that when I started my student teaching seminars at San Diego State I found myself in a very unique and experimental group of student teachers. We were in the "alternative education" group.  We were going to do our student teaching in "alternative high schools".  I had some knowledge of continuation high school, because my younger brother was attending one and doing well.  I really enjoyed my student teaching experience and did well, but my first teaching position was at a traditional high school and it wasn't until 22 years later that I became a continuation high school principal. I have been in that position the past 6 years.

 I know that all of you have the same passion that I have for alternative education.  Our vision is that "every child can learn and be successful if taught in the right manner."  We have dedicated our careers to helping those students who are often thought of as "throw-aways", we teach those students who are thought to be unteachable, and we continually reach those students who are said to be unreachable. 

 The California Continuation Education Association is your organization and I am honored to be its president.  Considering its size, this organization works wonders.  Last year alone we lobbied diligently and got the changes needed to make SB825 work for us in order to protect our funding.  We continue to be in the forefront of making ASAM a working alternative assessment tool.  If we are going to continue to be an influence in California's educational community, we must expand our membership.  We also have to find sources other than membership for funding the organization.  The executive board and the CDR are working on some exciting new ventures for CCEA, and hopefully by convention time some of them will be in place. 

 Speaking of the convention, it is not too early to start making your plans for this year's event.  Mark your calendar for this coming April.  It is also time to begin selecting your region's candidates for teacher, administrator, classified and support persons of the year.  Let's insure that all those who do such a great job for our kids get the recognition they deserve.

 Good luck and continue to have a great year.

 Dan Plough

The CCEA Conference will be held April 28-30, 2006 at the beautiful Gateway Sheraton Hotel in Los Angeles. This information packed conference is designed to assist Continuation school teachers, administrators and support staff better serve California's Continuation school students. This is the only conference strictly devoted to Continuation schools.  Last year's conference was clearly the best ever, and organizers are striving to make this year's conference even better!

 There will be many outstanding presentations this year, including curriculum strategies and development ideas; developing a Model Continuation High School; a legislative update from Peter Birdsall; the latest information on API, ASAM, AYP, NCLB, PI and other state and federal compliance requirements.  Marilyn George will join us once again this year on Friday to present a workshop on WASC for Continuation High Schools.  Bernice Stafford, Vice President of PLATO Learning, Inc. will be joining us to present workshops on both Friday and Saturday.  We are working on offering classes that will be taught by such groups as the Getty Museum and the Museum of Tolerance.  More information will follow on these workshops in the next newsletter.

 It is time to begin planning your trip to the 2006 CCEA State Conference April 28-30 at the beautiful Sheraton Gateway Hotel at the Los Angeles International Airport. Registration can be done online by clicking the link below. Call the hotel today to ensure your room reservation.  The number is 310-410-1852.  Be sure to ask for the CCEA Conference rate of $114.00 + tax. 

 We will once again honor our student writers on Friday night.  Those of you in attendance last year will remember the heart-wrenching, emotional stories told by our winner and the runner-up.  This year promises to be even better.  In addition, there will be a student art display on Saturday.  There will be an opportunity for each district to get together and meet Saturday afternoon.  We will have lots of vendors who will entice you with the latest from their companies. 

 And, of course, you won't want to miss the announcement of those of our own whom we honor each year:  Administrator of the Year, Support Person of the Year; Classified Employee of the Year; and Teacher of the Year. 

 There will be lots of prizes and beautiful gift baskets once again.  As we did in 2005, we will have a silent auction and money raised from that will go toward student scholarships.  Last year we raised in excess of $500.00.  Let's see if we can double the amount this year.  District Officers, start working on your gift baskets.  In addition, we will raffle off brand new TV's and VCR's on Sunday morning.  (Remember, you must be there to win!)

Submitted by Dennis Fisher, Educational Options Office

California Department of Education  

More than 68,000 students enrolled in Continuation high schools in 2004. As such, continuation students represent a significant percentage of the total number of students who may fail to pass the CAHSEE in June 2006.

Continuation students include a large number of Hispanics, African Americans, English learners, economically disadvantaged, special education, students in foster care, pregnant and parenting, court supervised, homeless, gifted and talented, and others.

 A common denominator among these students is that each is moving through the five stages of achieving academic success as illustrated by the Five Stage Model of Achievement (copy attached). Students must first achieve the Learning Readiness Indicators if they are to accomplish the Achievement and Completion Indicators necessary to pass the CAHSEE.

 There are 521 continuation high schools (CHs) in California. Of these, 84 are Model Continuation High Schools (MCHs). Although CHs do not collect or report data, MCHs student outcomes, including passing the CAHSEE, are reported in the course of the MCHs Recognition Program application process.

 MCHs provide excellent evidence of how all vulnerable students, whether they are enrolled in continuation or traditional high schools, can be supported to pass the CAHSEE.

 The following recommendations are based on promising practices identified through the MCHs Recognition Program.

 The key to student success is a commitment of resources by the Local Educational Agency (LEA) that provides the following learning support for each student:

 1.        School Organization
·    Characterized by a principal with visionary leadership, highly qualified and dedicated instructors, certificated counselors, and classified staff with shared decision-making.
·    Systematized counseling in which, in addition to certificated counselors and treatment professionals, all staff provide formal and informal academic, social and behavioral guidance on a daily basis.
·    Student Success Team model, or a variation thereof, that provides formal and informal assessment and case management of the entire student population.

 2.        Small Learning Environment
·    Student to teacher ratio in the range of 15 to 1.
·    Every student is known by every adult on campus.
·    LEA empowers principal, who empowers staff, who empower students, who empower peers.
·    Desirable behavior is modeled by all staff, students and school community members.

 3.        Individualized Instruction
·    Individual Learning Plan based on student strengths and realistic goals monitored regularly with comprehensive early interventions as needed to achieve the highest academic and social standards.
·    Alternative instructional strategies based on each student's unique learning style.
·    Multiple measures such as senior portfolios in which students demonstrate mastery of the standardized curriculum.

 4.        Parent, Family and Community Partnerships
·    Meaningful parent and family empowerment with community-linked services that support a nurturing environment with high academic and social-behavioral expectations.
·    School community partnerships that include parents, families, non-profit and for-profit agencies and business, and county and community linked services in which all stakeholders act on the conviction of shared goals in supporting student success, i.e., the belief that investment in learning support services provides equitable access for all students and is ultimately more cost effective for the community.

 5.        Flexible Scheduling with Real World Relevancy
·    Flexible class scheduling that accommodates the student's obligations to family and employment.
·    School-to-Career focus with intensive guidance and counseling that offers pathways to achieve academic and career goals simultaneously.
·    Flexible timeframes in which to demonstrate mastery, for example offering the option of completing the high school diploma and passing the CAHSEE in three years, four years, five years or longer. Eliminate the cap on the number of times the CAHSEE may be taken.
·    Expanding the existing option for special education students, to continue their high school education until age 22, for all students.

6.        High Academic Achievement
·    MCHs are WASC Accredited schools.
·    Standardized curriculum, current texts and materials, computer labs, concurrent enrollment in community colleges, cross-age tutoring, peer counseling.
·    MCHs students make up credits and grade-level deficiencies through short-term study-intensive academies such as concentrated reading and math programs. 

7.        Site Visit to Model Continuation High Schools
·    It is highly recommended that interested parties visit MCHs to gain a better understanding of these promising practices by observing them in actual application. The following schools offer excellent examples of these practices:
                        ·    Alta Vista High School, Mountain View
                        ·    Frontier High School, Whittier
                        ·    JerriAnn Bowman High School, Santa Clarita
                        ·    Cesar E. Chavez High School, Santa Ana
                        ·    Valley Oak High School, Napa

 Based on the above, recommendations include the following:
·    Provide resources necessary to bring all CHs up to the standard of MCHs thereby significantly increasing the probability that all continuation high school students pass the CAHSEE.
·    Provide flexible timeframes in which to demonstrate mastery, for example offering the option of completing the high school diploma and passing the CAHSEE in three years, four years, five years or longer.
·    Eliminate the cap on the number of times the CAHSEE may be taken.
·    Expanding the existing option for special education students, to continue their high school education until age 22, for all students.
·    Provide every school with a Student Success Team model, or variation thereof, that provides formal and informal assessment and case management of the entire student population.

Effort, Wisdom, Perseverance, Ability, Patience, and Love are all qualities that describe Glenna Dumey of Temescal Canyon High School, the California Continuation Education Association's Teacher of the Year.  Known as someone who will always make time for their needs, she is esteemed and appreciated by her students.  Working with a limited budget and many obstacles, Ms. Dumey exemplifies what a continuation teacher is all about.  Spending personal time and effort, she works long beyond her duty day to prepare and ensure that her students have access to everything they need. She gives up her conference period, lunchtime, and after school hours on a regular basis to tutor students who desire additional help.  You will never find Ms. Dumey sitting behind her desk. She is always circulating around her classroom and is constantly challenging her students to become the most they are capable of being. 

One could not, however, assess Glenna Dumey's career without mentioning the one factor that, while intangible, is the hallmark of her success in counseling; her love and concern for her students.  On Ms. Dumey's desk are pictures of students who have graduated and gone on to college, trade school, and the military.  Although a strict taskmaster, Ms. Dumey is well respected and beyond reproach when it comes to her subject knowledge.  She has honored herself and her school by being named a National Board Certified English teacher.

It is time to renew  membership in CCEA and support your professional organization in our important work on behalf of California's continuation students.  In this age of budget cuts and   extreme challenges, it is critical that we come together to do a better job with less.  The professional membership is of critical importance to you and your organization.  The $50.00 fee is probably the least expensive of any professional organization in existence.  Your dues help support our efforts for you in Sacramento, with the Model Schools Program, in putting on our conference and bringing you the latest and most important ideas that are working in Continuation Education.