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 News from Alliance College-Ready Public SchoolsEvery student has the ability. We give them the opportunity.May, 2009
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Four Alliance Schools Receive Top Honors as the State's Best -- They Are California Distinguished Schools!!
 Four Alliance College-Ready Public Schools -- College Ready Academy High School #4, Gertz-Ressler High School, William and Carol Ouchi High School, and Marc & Eva Stern Math and Science School -- have been recognized as California Distinguished Schools by the California Department of Education, an honor that recognizes the state's most exemplary public schools for their educational programs and academic excellence.
This year, the Distinguished School selection process required schools to provide an in-depth description of two "signature" practices implemented at the schools that are replicable and directly related to the success of their students. During an intensive site visit by a trained team of external educators, additional evidence about the effectiveness of the "signature" practices was gathered and analyzed.
Only 125 high schools in California were selected to
receive this honor. Eleven of the Distinguished high school winners are
in the Los Angeles Unified School District, nine of the eleven winners are
charter schools and four in the group are Alliance high schools.
"These extraordinary high schools have shown they are able to increase the achievement of all their students and have provided concrete evidence to prove that they are closing the achievement gap," said Jack O'Connell State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
"Yet again, the extraordinary academic achievement of Alliance schoo ls has been recognized," said Alliance College-Ready Public Schools President & CEO, Judy Burton, "We are honored to have our students' outstanding achievement acknowledged and delighted to share our leading-edge instructional practices with others throughout California. Congratulations to the Alliance principals, teachers, staff, students and parents for their hard work and dedication. This is a great honor. We are very proud of you."
An awards ceremony honoring the Distinguished Schools will be held on Friday, May 29 at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim.
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City, State, Education, Civic Leaders, Students Celebrate the Alliance at the Official Opening of
the Marc & Eva Stern Math and Science School
 Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa began the celebration of the new Stern Math and Science School by praising its students, "These young people not only meet, they surpass our expectations!" The Mayor joined over 300 state and local education leaders and 400 students and their families at the official ribbon cutting of the state-of-the-art facility built on the campus of California State University, Los Angeles. CSULA President James Rosser said, "The partnership between us and the Alliance adds a new deep dimension to our university. Students will attend college while still in high school. This is a bridge between promise and success."
Many speakers described the excellence of Alliance charter school education as a model t o other urban schools and districts. With 100% graduation rate, high college attendance numbers, and enviable state test scores, Alliance schools prove that all students can learn given the opportunity.
LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines said, "You've taken it beyond rhetoric and made it real. We want to learn from you." LAUSD School Board member Yolie Flores Aguilar added, "The LAUSD Board won't rest until we have schools like this for every single student in LA."
The Alliance students and hundreds of guests gave a standing ovation to Stern MASS eleventh grader Cesar Gomez who told the audience that "Failure is not a option here. Our teachers never give up on us. We work hard to prove that students in East LA will succeed in college." Then he thanked benefactors Marc and Eva Stern and all Alliance supporters and partners saying, "Your generosity has changed my life and the lives of all of us."
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Alliance Seniors Already Accepted to Four-year Colleges
By U.S. mail and email, the earliest college decisions are arriving, and many students in the Alliance Class of 2009 have already been accepted to four-year colleges and universities in this first wave of early admissions. Seniors at Gertz-Ressler, Heritage and Huntington Park College-Ready Academy High Schools have already received more than 400 "We are pleased t o inform you..." messages. There are still more notifications from UC and private colleges to arrive. So most seniors have not made their final decisions. However, as Heritage twelfth grader Anthony Urzua says, "Now I know I'm going. It's real. I'll be the first in my family to go away to college. "
Alliance counselors call this response "very encouraging." All public and private college acceptances will be mailed by early May; students will make their college choices in the coming months. Roberto Ramos has several acceptances including UCLA. He's one of five Gertz-Ressler students accepted to this highly selective university. "UCLA received 57,000 applications this year. Only 22% were accepted," reports Counselor Veronica Gonzalez. "Our kids did really well." Roberto hasn't decided which university he'll attend. But he is certain that he has good choices because he attends Gertz-Ressler. "I started high school at a big neighborhood school where the campus was not safe and it was hard for teachers to teach," he says. "I wouldn't have been accepted to these great colleges if I hadn't transferred. At GRHS, they really pushed me toward the best."
 Many Alliance students describe this as a nerve-wracking time, made more so because of headlines announcing that the economic crisis is causing many colleges to reduce the number of students they will enroll. "I'm still working hard to keep my grades up," reports Marisol Sanchez, an HP senior who has received five acceptances. "I don't want to lose any ground. My family is very proud. I'm the youngest child and the first to attend a four-year college. I always had the determination. The Alliance's Huntington Park College-Ready Academy High School gave me the help and the push to make college happen for me."
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Alliance School Chosen to Participate in First
College Corps Program
California State University, Los Angeles has selected the Alliance's Huntington Park College-Ready Academy High School to launch its new college outreach project. The College Corps Program will provide three specially trained CSULA counselors to guide HP's current ninth graders toward the goal of being college-ready. The trio will come to campus three days a week to meet with the 150 HP freshmen until the end of the school year.
HP was chosen as a first site for this pilot program because Francisco Cornelio, one of the University's outreach officers, knew of the Alliance's national reputation for instructional excellence and academic rigor. He knew specifically about HP and its mission to ensure all students go on to success in college. "This program will be invaluable to us," says Danny Ramirez, HP's College Counselor, "Ninth grade is the perfect time to start focusing on college-going. The CSULA team means that professionals will be on the Alliance campus to help all our students apply, get accepted and be successful in college."
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Judy Burton, President & CEO2023 South Union Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90007(213) 943-4930 http://www.laalliance.org
"Where kids from L.A.'s lowest performing communities achieve
at the highest levels and go on to success in college"
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