* 4 Year Academic plan format
* Career Pathway handouts
* Sequential planner for Engineering/Technology 
        (also reflects electives throughout the school that are a part of the pathway)
* Descriptions of our Job shadowing and Community Service graduation requirements 

By structuring the curriculum in this way students are able to explore subjects in a deeper more intensive way. North Monterey County High School has been recommended as a New American High School and is in the process of completing their application. This format also was a contributing factor to North County becoming a California Distinguished School.

This past year we have hosted, Paso Robles, Moro Bay High, Atascadero, and Gonzales High Schools. We will continue this "open door" policy. Visitations should be scheduled through Mike Cappetti, Engineering Technology site leader.

Our project director has also presented to the Santa Barbara, Salinas and El Dorado Union Districts. She will be available to come out of retirement to assist with further presentations.

North Monterey County High School does not have a developed web site. Through this funding we will have one for the Engineering Technology created.

The Engineering Technology pathway will create a visual brochure that explains the program, the courses within the program and the sequential plan students should follow for successful completion of the pathway. The brochure will also include photos of students on diverse tasks within the pathway.

The Engineering Pathway has been represented by two articles in the "Wingspan" NCÕs newsletter to parents. These articles will be a priority for the pathway.

Mission of North Monterey County High School
North Monterey County High School is a community school, committed to excellence and dedicated to preparing students academically, socially and physically to make a difference in a changing world.
Vision of North Monterey County High School
North Monterey County High School is committed to educational reform.

Schools Create Small, Highly Personalized Learning Environments

* We are a stand-alone comprehensive high school.
* English/Social Studies courses create "condos" in grades 9-12.
* Math/Science are paired at the 9th grade level.
* Our campus designed to be a highly personalized and to provide a safe learning environment.
* 95% of the student body (on a recent survey) scored NC as a safe place to go to school.
* Teacher to student ratios run anywhere from 24 to 1 to 30 to 1.
* Students rate (as number one,) their personal relationship with their teachers.

Students get extra Support from Adults
* We are developing a homeroom structure where students will have a mentor. Staff will be responsible for a smaller number of students than in traditional high schools and will continue to work with the same students all four years as do our coordinators.
* Classified staff is often involved with students, serving as class advisors, chaperones and support.

Schools Form Active Alliances with Parents, Employers, Community members and Policy makers to Promote Student Learning and Ensure Accountability for Results
* NMCHS has over 750 alliances with employers and the community. This includes service learning and job shadowing sites.
* Several of our teachers participate in Teachers in the Workplace.

Schools are using New Forms of Assessment
* Students must do classroom presentations of their work in all subject areas including math, science, language arts and social studies. Students projects are often shown in public venues and entered in various community competitions.
* Performance standards are in place for every course on our campus.

Instructional Program 
Students develop a four year academic plan in their freshman Choices class. Those students who enter North County after the freshman year meet with the Career Pathways coordinator for assessment and complete their plan. ALL students at North Monterey County are in the college prep core. They then complete electives within their pathway. 76% of North County students complete A-F requirements. NC has a completion rate of 93.3%.

Descriptive Data Opening in 1978, the school serves approximately 1421 students, ethnically diverse with 55% Caucasian and Asian students, 45% underrepresented students (African American, Hispanic, Native American & Southeast Asian). We have 45.9% students on Free/Reduced lunch program. STAR results show Reading/Language Arts with a 46% passing of 942 students tested. In mathematics 54% passed of 934 tested.

According to recent studies, 18.4% of our graduates aspire to attend a four-year college, 34.4% plan to attend a two-year institution, and 13% seek employment following graduation, and 47.2% intend to attend trade-industrial-(private) education sites, enter the work force or enlist in the military. Our certificated staff includes 66 classroom teachers, five coordinators, a student activities direction, an athletic director, a librarian, 5 special education teachers, a School Improvement Program coordinator and a bilingual coordinator. There are two full-time administrators and 41 classified staff members.

* We receive technical assistance from a large source of business and community leaders.
* North Monterey County High School is a Specialized Secondary Site in Engineering.
* For the third time, North Monterey County High School has become a California Distinguished High School this current school year. ( 1984, 1994 and 1999)
* North Monterey County High School will be highlighted in Revisiting Second to None.

Awards and Incentives We believe in recognizing student success in academic and extra curricular activities. North County participates in the Renaissance program where students receive academic recognition. Students often receive "Good Guy" post cards at home, sent by staff to bring recognition for something the student has done. Students who letter in athletics are honored at three separate award banquets. The National Honor Society is also honored at a banquet. Our Dance and Music Program hold separate Senior Honors programs each year. Each section taught on this campus awards certificates of merit ( one per section) to one high achieving student. Students at graduation are also eligible for medals within the departments. North Monterey County High School has a scholarship assembly at the end of the school year where $600,000.00 is distributed to students for scholarships to post secondary sites.

Many of our outstanding programs reflect the importance we place on our sense of community. We pride ourselves on the wide variety of activities offered on campus for students and community members including athletic events, artistic performances, clubs, and organizations. The alliances we have developed with businesses and non-profit organizations in the area provide our students with job shadow experiences, meaningful community service opportunities to fulfill our 45 hour graduation requirement, and potential employment sites.

Students at North Monterey County High School learn in an innovative and professional environment fostered by the use of advanced learning methods and technology. Both staff and students welcome the challenge and understand the commitment necessary to implement a rigorous and relevant curriculum, one in which standards and technology are embedded.

All the core activities of the school concentrate on student learning and achievement. In 1992 North Monterey County High School applied for and became a SB1274 (restructured high school) North Monterey County High School is an extraordinary school! There is a spirit and camaraderie that is the envy of other high schools. Through its 20- year existence, this high school has served as a state model for other schools in student activities, social studies, career education, math, dance and our shared leadership model. In 1985 we were selected as a California and National Distinguished school. This honor was bestowed again in 1994, and most recently 1999. Although these awards are prestigious, Condors are savvy enough to know when they are "missing the mark." We know in order to be a dynamic school we must continue to assess, monitor and adjust. Through this process we have continuously evolved into an institute that welcomes diversity and change.

*One immediate change implemented at NC was block scheduling. This made us one of the first secondary sites in the state to move into this model. We have three blocks of instruction with a twice-weekly tutorial assistance class. When surveyed about this block schedule 52% scored the schedule as excellent (on a scale of 5-1), 34% scored it a 4, 7% scored it a 3 and 7% scored it a 1.

*As a result of our WASC accreditation in 1993 we have implemented a Career Pathways program that has become a model for many schools throughout the state. Through Career Pathways our students (self-select) enroll in a sequential course of electives in addition to their core classes that prepare them to be productive adults. The curriculum developed in our "Choices" class, the introductory class required of all incoming 9th graders, has received the "Golden Apple Award" ASCA for outstanding curriculum development.

*North County is also a role model in service learning and community service. Both have graduation requirements. NC is the only high school in the Salinas Valley which has full-time employees to facilitate this process. This reflects the commitment district wide to give our students the opportunity to experience real life experiences prior to leaving high school. Our program has key partners in these two programs in excess of 175 businesses and industry sites and community organizations.

Three years ago NC put in place academic standards for every class on campus. These included classes that have no written state standards. We adhere to the policy that what we teach is important or we do not teach it. Therefore, if a student fails to pass one standard, they do not pass the class. They must attend an alternative education class, and pass it in order to progress. .

"Second to None" was used as a tool for considering change at NC. North Monterey County High School will be highlighted in "Revisiting Second to None."

We believe students rise to the occasion and are reaching for a higher academic bar. This is in place through a dedication to "All means all" motto used throughout curriculum assessment. North County is dedicated to having all our students becoming productive adults. This is reinforced through

* All core subjects taught in Spanish & SDAIE
* Special education students participate in Ice Cream University
* Tutorial periods each week allow students to make conscious decisions about where they need additional help in specific subjects.

North Monterey County High School is committed to a college preparatory curriculum. Through the restructuring process NMC implemented a college prep curriculum for all students in 1994. Students take Algebra I and Issues in Science in the 9th grade, Geometry and Biology in the 10th grade. The number of advanced mathematics and science classes has increased. All core English, Social Studies, Math and Science classes are college prep. All core classes are taught in English-only, SDAIE and Spanish to accommodate those students with special language needs.

One of the site goals for this year is addressing career pathways with integration in each class. Curriculum has been developed in Language arts and psychology

Where are we going?
*Middle schools and K-5 need to look at curriculum through staff development for implementation
*Continue to develop curriculum with different disciplines and the feeder schools
*Continue to develop the home room Career Pathways forum for mentors

STC:

Enables students to make goals relative to their employability (career) majors
Allows students to investigate opportunities within career majors
* a. employability skills
* b. allows for realistic post-secondary decisions

Staff development and Planning Emphasize Student Learning and Achievement
* NMCHS provides a common prep (planning period) on a daily basis.
* Staff development is focused on student achievment by protocols.

Students learning is Enhanced Through Real-Life Experiences
* Students select a Career Pathway, participate in job shadowing and community service as a part of graduation requirements

Stronger Partnerships are Forged with Middle Schools and College
* NMCHS has multiple articulation agreements in place. Hartnell instructors teach on our campus. ("Vertical slice/UCSC partnership)
* NMC provides Talent Search and Upward Bound. We have site mentors on campus each week from San Jose State University, California State University of Monterey Bay and University of California Santa Cruz.
* NMC has accepted as "core" a rigorous academic program. There are no remedial courses taught on our campus.

Curricula are Challenging, Relevant and Cover Materials in Depth
* We subscribe to Electric Library.
* We are initiating a SAT readiness program.
* Teachers are trained to teach to various learning styles.
* Students are taught about their learning styles through their 9th grade choices class.
* Advanced Placement, Honors classes are available in Mathematics, Language Arts, Social Studies and Science.
* We emphasize fewer topics as general issues and more in-depth studies on others.

Periods of Instruction are Longer and More Flexible
* North Monterey County High School has been in block schedule format (1 hour and 25 minuete blocks 3 classes per "semester,") since 1993. We have found the additional time equates to in-depth educational platforms.