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Hawk Academy, an innovative program being offered for the first time at Anzar High School, is giving 40 students the chance to attend college-level classes without leaving the campus. Visiting instructors will be offering qualifying students classes in a variety of subject areas, earning them up to 12 college credits by graduation.
The Hawk Academy is part of the College and Career Access Pathways (CCAP) program, available through a grant from the California Department of Education. CCAP was developed to create an easier pathway for high school students who are planning to enroll in a community college.
“What is specific about CCAP courses,” said Jessica Weiler, a career education counselor at Gavilan College, “is that they are offered on the high school campus typically during the high school day and they’re only open to high school students.”
Similar programs have been started at Hollister High as well as Live Oak and Sobrato High Schools in Morgan Hill. Students at Christopher and Gilroy High Schools in Gilroy have the option of taking these classes after school.
Students at Anzar have already been able to take college courses at the Gavilan campus on their own time, usually after school. Taking part in the CCAP program is just the next step in increasing educational opportunities, said School Counselor Julie Hicks.
“It was really important for us to be able to provide college-level courses here at Anzar,” she said. “It meant we could prevent any transportation barriers for our students so that all students who are eligible to take this class have equal access to the dual-enrollment classes.”
Students who are participating will, at the completion of the semester, receive both high school and college credits. The college credits are transferable to both the California State University and University of California systems.
The classes are intended for juniors and seniors and those who are interested in attending have to be in good academic standing, have good attendance records and must obtain the approval of their parents and a school counselor.
“Some students were nervous and reluctant about taking a college course,” Hicks said. “But truthfully, those are some of the students we were targeting. We want them to find success in taking a college course here and hopefully, that will translate to them being successful in college.”
The first class offered in the program is psychology and is being taught by Weiler. It offers a general overview of psychology, including basics such as how genetics and environmental factors contribute to developing the personality.
“I start at the very beginning, just reminding them this is a college course,” Weiler said. “I tell them it will appear on their college transcripts, I will treat them like college students and I expect college-level assignments to be turned in.”
She said her students so far have been adjusting well, with only a few needing special counseling.
“That’s not unusual in a college course,” she said. “You typically see that you have at least a handful of students who are struggling. But this group seems very prepared and I think they’re doing a great job so far.”
The class subjects will be those recommended for a General Education curriculum, Hicks said, and students who choose to continue after the psychology class will be offered a personal finance class next semester under a new teacher.
Student Victoria Flores, 16, said she has learned a lot in the class and wanted to take psychology because she wanted to gain insights into how the mind works and why people behave the way they do.
“I also learned how it can also give me insights into my own thoughts and emotions,” she said. “I want to be a nurse and learning about psychology helps me better understand human behavior, emotions and mental health. It will be valuable when interacting with patients, understanding their needs and providing empathetic care.”
Getting credits for college was 17-year-old Jackson Caster’s point of interest in signing on to the Hawk Academy.
“Getting those GE credits will allow me to take more classes relevant to my major,” he said. “But I’ve never studied psychology before and I’m gaining a lot more understanding of concepts of how people think and act around me, which is really interesting. “
Weiler said she is very pleased with how the classes have been progressing and how enthusiastic the students are.
“This is definitely something that Gavilan has been wanting to do for a long time,” she said. “And I think that now that we’ve done it once and all that hard work has come to fruition, it’s turned out to be super exciting.”
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