GILROY
– When Principal John Perales and teachers William Chavez,
Jeremy Dirks, Richard Red and Luke Vranizan arrived at the Mt.
Madonna campus Friday morning, their hair styles ranged from gray
and close-cropped to black and chin-length.
GILROY – When Principal John Perales and teachers William Chavez, Jeremy Dirks, Richard Red and Luke Vranizan arrived at the Mt. Madonna campus Friday morning, their hair styles ranged from gray and close-cropped to black and chin-length.
At 11:30 a.m., the five men stood, side by side, their heads buzzed to stubble.
Mt. Madonna Continuation High School students held their elders accountable to a promise made early last week: If they showed up for standardized testing at the school and helped earn a participation rate of 95 percent, they could buzz the men’s heads.
The participation rate as of Friday was a whopping 100 percent for the math test and 98 percent for English. Last year, the school’s participation rate for testing was 69 percent for math and 66 percent for English.
“That’s incredible,” Perales said. “I’ve had to run the numbers twice to say, ‘Are we missing anybody?’ ”
He said that the English participation rate actually could go as high as 99 percent, depending on make-ups. The federal government requires that 95 percent of all students and all student subgroups take standardized tests.
Tamaya Duenas, a junior at the school, watched clumps of hair fall to the ground as students and teachers cheered from the sidelines. She said the school’s post-test activities, including barbecues and a fun-jump, helped motivate her to go to class every day and on time.
“I usually come after 9 a.m. sometimes, but since they’re doing this, I came on time,” she said. “It’s like a reward for us.”
The enthusiasm of school staff helped students realize the importance of the tests, she said.
Besides, “some of the (students) don’t like some of the teachers, so they wanted to see them with shaved heads.”
Perales was nonchalant about his haircut, which, thanks to styling by student Mike Martinez, resembled a bald Alfalfa: completely shaved except an off-center tuft of hair.
“It’s just hair; it’ll grow back in a couple of months,” Perales said. “This is great, the kids earned it.”
Superintendent Edwin Diaz praised Perales for his school’s achievement.
“I doubt any continuation school in the state can say that,” Diaz said over a round of applause from the audience.
While the ends might justify the means, Perales said he still struggles with the idea of using gimmicks to improve attendance.
“I was brought up where you do what’s expected of you and you don’t get a reward,” he said. “But I think, working with a special population and a population that hasn’t been successful for many years, I think this is a way to show them that this is something that really matters.”
Lori Stuenkel covers education for The Dispatch. She can be reached at 842-6400 x277 or via e-mail at lo***@************ch.com.
