Two years ago, in an attempt to stop the trend of high
performing students checking out of Gilroy Unified after middle
school, two Gilroy High School parents organized an orientation day
for prospective students and their parents. I was one of the
parents who attended that evening, along with nearly 500 other
interested parents and students.
Two years ago, in an attempt to stop the trend of high performing students checking out of Gilroy Unified after middle school, two Gilroy High School parents organized an orientation day for prospective students and their parents. I was one of the parents who attended that evening, along with nearly 500 other interested parents and students.
The evening was by all measures a success. It was one of the high school’s finest moments, and the incoming class at Gilroy High (now the class of 2007) is a strong class. The previous year, Gilroy High had lost many top students to private schools. After this presentation, many parents took a second look at Gilroy High and opted to send their students to our flagship school.
In addition to the orientation night, students that year had the option to “shadow” a GHS student to see what a typical school day was like. I liked what I heard that night from the parents, students and staff and cautiously proceeded to enroll my daughter at the high school.
What a difference a year makes. Last year, the administration decided to run an orientation night. The night before the event, they informed the parent club, so there was no parent input into the planning and public notice of the event. About 75 people attended last year, a sharp decline over the previous year’s attendance. It was hastily put together and could not be deemed a success.
Fast forward to this year. The parent club was asked to host a reception for the orientation Tuesday night. The administration scheduled this on the same night as a school board meeting, so trustees would be able to attend. This showed poor judgment .
Parents of eighth-grade students from all the local schools were invited with the caveat that this orientation was for “parents who are considering sending their student to private school.”
Parents were given less than a week’s notice. That was another in a series of mistakes made by the administration. The parent club was never informed that the orientation was only for a select group, so we were busy asking parents to bring in dozens of treats for the reception.
The event was scheduled the same evening as the South Valley Middle School parent club meeting. Once again, poor planning. A week before the freshman orientation, the principal at Brownell had not received notice of the event.
The event happened Tuesday night but it was merely a shadow of what I attended two years ago. More staff than parents were there. The parent club decided to forego hosting a reception, which turned out to be a good decision. I wouldn’t have wanted to ask for donations of 480 brownies for 25 people. The event should have been rescheduled and opened up to parents of incoming students (freshman and transfer students).
The administration is now saying that an orientation for incoming freshman will take place at the Spring Fair in May. Having been at the event last year, I can only hope that they do a better job. The turnout for the Spring Fair last year was dismal. Many teachers were not in their classrooms, and there was little evidence of student work that generally is the highlight of a spring open house.
The administration at our high school is not capable of producing the type of program which sold me on the school two years ago. Jackie Stevens and Rhoda Bress know how to put together a great orientation, and they are both on the parent club board. These women are readily available should the administration need a few pointers.
