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Simi Valley Unified School District

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Simi Valley Unified School District (SVUSD) is a school district in Ventura County, California . The district serves students from the city of Simi Valley, the census-designated place of Santa Susana , and other adjacent unincorporated areas. SVUSD operates 18 elementary schools, three middle schools, four high schools (including two comprehensive schools, one magnet school, and one continuation school), one adult school, and one independent study school. During the 2014–15 school year, the district's enrollment numbered about 18,000. The current superintendent is Dr. Hani Youssef, who has served since July 2022.

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42-574: Throughout its early history, the Simi Valley Unified School District educated ninth graders at its junior high schools. This changed in the mid-1990s, when the school board approved a controversial plan to move ninth graders to its high schools. To offset the lower enrollment at the junior high schools, the district converted one of the then four junior high campuses into a magnet high school . Sequoia Junior High School reopened as Santa Susana High School in 1996. Beginning in 1995,

84-543: A US district court judge required the state of Missouri to fund the creation of magnet schools in the Kansas City Public Schools to reverse the white flight that had afflicted the school district since the 1960s. The district's annual budget more than tripled in the process. The expenditure per pupil and the student-teacher ratio were the best of any major school district in the nation. Many high schools were given college-level facilities. Still, test scores in

126-595: A child centered approach." Magnet schools have been the most successful of the ideas that originated from the Open Schools movement. It was expounded in 1971 by educator Nolan Estes, superintendent of Dallas Independent School District . The Magnet Schools Assistance Program was developed in the early 1980s as a way to encourage schools to address de facto racial segregation. Funds were given to school districts that implemented voluntary desegregation plans or court orders to reduce racial isolation. From 1985 to 1999,

168-725: A decline in enrollment and approved the closure in January 2015. Monte Vista School is using the Lincoln campus and Justin Early Learners Academy is using the Justin campus. The SVUSD board voted in 2014 to offer random drug testing of high school students whose parents or legal guardians voluntarily sign them up. In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of mandatory drug testing by public schools of students participating in extracurricular activities. Magnet school In

210-500: A diverse learning environment. Within a few years, in locations such as Richmond, Virginia , additional magnet school programs for children with special talents were developed at facilities in locations that parents would have otherwise found undesirable. That effort to both attract voluntary enrollment and achieve the desired racial balance met with considerable success and helped improve the acceptance of farther distances, hardships with transportation for extracurricular activities, and

252-445: A lottery among applicants. Most magnet schools concentrate on a particular discipline or area of study, while others (such as International Baccalaureate schools) have a more general focus. Magnet programs may focus on academics ( mathematics , natural sciences , and engineering ; humanities ; social sciences ; fine or performing arts ) or may focus on technical/vocational/agricultural education . Access to free transportation

294-512: A multitude of magnet school programs. The magnet offerings are organized as clusters , which are collectively called the Career Development Center. A student attending Skyline may generally choose between two options: pursuing a normal, traditional curriculum (Skyline's original attendance zone was drawn to relieve overcrowding at Samuell and Bryan Adams high schools); or attending both a cluster and regular classes at Skyline. In

336-471: A pattern later characterized as white flight , the hypersegregation of blacks and whites, as the latter moved to the suburbs . The first charter school, McCarver Elementary School, opened in Tacoma, Washington , in 1968. This second type of magnet can often take the form of "a school within a school," meaning that the school may have no competitive admissions for the majority of the school population, and even

378-552: A place where superior students could undertake studies in preparation for a variety of professions . In December 1966, architectural plans for the school, whose working name was "Science-Technical Center," were approved by the Dallas School Board . By 1969, Stamps, who had been slated as the school's first principal, suggested the name "Skyline High School," inspired by the view of the Downtown Dallas skyline afforded from

420-730: A school". In large urban areas, several magnet schools with different specializations may be combined into a single "center," such as Skyline High School in Dallas . Other countries have similar types of schools, such as specialist schools in the United Kingdom . Most of these are academically selective. Other schools are built around elite-sporting programs or teach agricultural skills such as farming or animal husbandry. In 1965, then Vice President Hubert Humphrey came to John Bartram High School in Southwest Philadelphia to declare it

462-542: Is a key component in facilitating racial diversity in magnet schools. According to a survey distributed at the Magnet Schools of America's (MSA) 2008 annual meeting, in magnet schools with free transportation services, non-white students comprise almost 33% of the student body, which is higher than the 23% found in magnet schools without such services. Moreover, 11.9% of magnet schools that do not provide transportation are largely one-race, while only 6.4% of magnet schools with

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504-417: Is the oldest and biggest magnet school in the nation." In 2021, a policy was enacted making students who were tardy to school barred from attending their classes. Outrage from parents resulted in media coverage and eventual overturning of this policy. In 2024, the 50th anniversary of the school's opening, Skyline was featured on NBC 's "Brag About Your School". In that same year, Skyline faculty announced

546-491: Is voluntary. There are magnet schools at the elementary , middle , and high school levels. In the United States, where education is decentralized , some magnet schools are established by school districts and draw only from the district, while others are set up by state governments and may draw from multiple districts . Other magnet programs are within comprehensive schools , as is the case with several "schools within

588-626: The (presently-named) Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and the High School for the Health Professions (now the School of Health Professions at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Magnet Center ). In 2007, district officials announced a plan to relieve overcrowding at Skyline by moving several Skyline magnet programs to Emmett J. Conrad High School , meanwhile hoping to increase

630-479: The Simi Valley Unified School District considered closing schools due to what was then early on-set declining enrollment. Simi Elementary School, in the 1990s, was already considered first for school closure due to high maintenance costs and its small size. Other schools considered at the time were Sycamore, Mountain View, and Justin elementary schools. Ultimately, the district voted to not close any school due to backlash from

672-627: The Super Senior Scholarship , a $ 500 scholarship for seniors paid for by donations from Skyline alumni . The Skyline Raiders compete in the following sports: Skyline High School has the following programs: About 90% of the students graduate yearly while averaging 1000 students per graduating class. A team of Skyline students won the United States National Academic Championship in 1985. In 2024, Skyline's Advanced Mathematics cluster, and specifically

714-405: The U.S. education system , magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula . Normally, a student will attend an elementary school, and this also determines the middle school and high school they attend unless they move. " Magnet " refers to how magnet schools accept students from different areas, pulling students out of the normal progression of schools. Attending them

756-425: The United States, and although there is some overlap, their origins and missions remain largely distinct. The first type of magnet school is the fully competitive admissions magnet school. These schools use competitive admissions, usually rely on a standardized assessment score, and are structured to serve and support populations that are 100% gifted and/or talented students. Schools in this group generally rank among

798-504: The United States. In the mid-1960s, B. J. Stamps, Bragg Stockton, and other Dallas educators conceived the idea of a very large high school for the Dallas Independent School District that would offer career education in addition to a traditional high-school curriculum. Stamps emphasized continually that the facility he envisioned was "absolutely not going to be a vocational school for unsuccessful students" but rather

840-623: The application text itself. Skyline High School (Dallas) Skyline High School is a public magnet school in the Buckner Terrace area of Dallas , in the U.S. state of Texas . Skyline is a part of the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) and serves grades 9 through 12. In 2015, the school was rated " Met Standard " by the Texas Education Agency . Skyline was the first magnet high school in

882-458: The committee decided not to close any schools and disbanded. On January 31, 2014, Simi Elementary School was notified of possible relocation of the school due to the overall condition and safety of the campus. The school was built in 1926 as the first in Simi Valley; Ventura County has named it a Historical Landmark. The issues at hand regarding the facility and infrastructure are: The Inspection

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924-454: The community, as they had previously closed four schools prior in the 1980s. Enrollment declines in Simi Valley and the state of California continued into the 2000s. Following a peak of 22,000 in 2003, the number of students in the district reduced to 18,000 in 2013. In response, a committee consisting of administrators, teachers, parents, and community members recommended closing three schools. On January 14, 2014, after hearing public testimony,

966-583: The cost of needed repairs to the Simi Elementary campus, SVUSD decided to close Simi Elementary. On February 4, 2014, the board voted 4–1 to relocate Simi Elementary to the Mountain View Elementary campus as of February 18, 2014; the school continued to function as a separate school until the end of the 2013–14 school year. In the fall of the 2014-15 school year, SVUSD made a recommendation to close Abraham Lincoln and Justin elementary schools due to

1008-451: The early years of Skyline's existence, administrators and faculty of existing, traditional high schools in the Dallas Independent School District frequently expressed resentment of Skyline's desire to recruit their talented and gifted students and in some instances actively resisted recruitment efforts. District officials appointed a task force to address these concerns. Nevertheless, with the continued existence of Skyline's magnet programs and

1050-609: The fall of 1976. Since its opening Skyline has consistently been DISD's largest high school in terms of enrollment. As of 2015, Skyline is one of the largest predominately Hispanic high schools in Texas with over 70% of the 4,500+ students identifying as Hispanic. In 1971 Nolan Estes , the DISD superintendent, referred to it as a " magnet school " upon its introduction; Jim Schutze of the Dallas Observer wrote that "According to Skyline lore, it

1092-461: The first magnet school in the country. Bartram's curriculum was concentrated in the commercial field, offering commercial and business training to students from all over Philadelphia. In the United States, the term "magnet school" refers to public schools with enrichment programs that are designed to attract and serve certain targeted subgroups of potential students and their families. There are two major categories of public magnet school structures in

1134-607: The latter's achievement levels. These actions have in some instances occasioned resentment by Skyline's own faculty and educational community, who have worried that Skyline's Career Development Center was created only to ultimately self-destruct, and, in the most recent events, that successful students educated at Skyline are being used to artificially boost another school's academic standing. District officials continue in their efforts to respond to these controversies. Skyline served grades 10 and 11 in 1970–1971, and grades 10–12 from 1971 to 1976. The school has included grades 9–12 since

1176-486: The magnet program itself may not have fully competitive admissions. This is consistent with the equity-based objectives of such programs. With the magnets designed to increase equity, at first school districts tried using involuntary plans which involved court-ordered attendance, the busing of children far from their homes, and building closer schools to achieve the required balance. Later, voluntary school integration plans were developed. One approach that educators within

1218-517: The magnet schools did not rise; the black-white gap did not diminish; and there was less, not greater, integration. Finally, on September 20, 2011, The Missouri Board of Education voted unanimously to withdraw the district's educational accreditation status from January 1, 2012. Districts started embracing the magnet school models in the hope that their geographically open admissions would end racial segregation in "good" schools and decrease de facto segregation of schools in poorer areas. To encourage

1260-420: The number of magnet schools has risen dramatically. Over 232 school districts housed magnet school programs in the early 1990s. By the end of the decade, nearly 1,400 magnet schools were operating across the country. Traditionally, these magnet schools are found in neighborhoods with large minority populations. They advertise their unique educational curricula in order to attract white students who do not live in

1302-560: The older term " specialized school " instead of "magnet school" to refer to them ). Another type of "magnet school" or "magnet program" emerged in the United States in the 1970s as one means of remedying racial segregation in public schools, and they were written into law in Section 5301 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Authorization. Demographic trends following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education US Supreme Court decision revealed

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1344-483: The provision of transportation are characterized as one-race schools. Such services are integral in ensuring that potential out-of-neighborhood students have access to these schools of choice. Ultimately, the presence of free transportation contributes to more integrated magnet environments. Across the country, magnet school application forms assume that its readers are proficient in reading and writing in English, understand

1386-479: The public school system came up with was open schools. During the Open Schools movement of the 1970s, several ideas designed to influence public education were put into practice, including Schools without Walls, Schools within a School, Multicultural Schools, Continuation Schools, Learning Centers, Fundamental Schools, and Magnet Schools. "These schools were characterized by parent, student, and teacher choice, autonomy in learning and pace, non-competitive evaluation, and

1428-472: The racial integration aspects, such as Capital Prep Magnet School, a high school in Hartford, Connecticut . Capital Prep, a year-round school where more than 80% of its students are black and Latino, boasts a near-0% dropout rate; 100% of its 2009 senior class was sent to a four-year college. According to the school's principal, the goal is to prepare all of its students for college. Since coming into fruition,

1470-505: The school's curriculum, and recognize what kinds of resources are offered to students at that respective school. In diverse urban contexts especially, these assumptions privilege some families over others. Parents who seek out magnet schools tend to be Asian, educated, middle-class, and English-fluent. Thus, in order to break down the racial disparities these schools were intended to dismantle, magnet school programs have to be intentional in not only their outreach efforts, but also how they create

1512-504: The school's upper floors, and in February 1970 the Skyline name was approved by the school board. Classes at Skyline began in the fall semester of 1970. Until the main facility at 7777 Forney Road opened early in 1971, instruction was held at other southeast Dallas sites. From its inception, Skyline has fulfilled Stamps's original conception of offering both a regular high-school curriculum and

1554-479: The separation of siblings. Even as districts such as Richmond were released from desegregation court orders, the parental selection of magnet school programs has continued to create more racially diverse schools than would have otherwise been possible. With a wide range of magnet schools available, a suitable program could be found for more children than only the "bright" ones for whom the earliest efforts were directed. Some 21st-century magnet schools have de-emphasized

1596-610: The subsequent "spinning off" of several independent magnet schools, the issue has persisted to the present day, and district officials continue efforts to allay feelings of resentment. Over time, numerous clusters have left Skyline and moved into facilities of their own, becoming full-fledged DISD magnet high schools. For example, the Performing Arts Cluster and the Health Careers Cluster both discontinued their affiliations with Skyline in 1976 and became, respectively,

1638-469: The surrounding area. In this way, the schools act as a "magnet" pulling out-of-neighborhood students that would otherwise go to a school in their traditional attendance zone. Some magnet schools have a competitive entrance process, requiring an entrance examination , interview , or audition . Other magnet schools either select all students who apply, or use a lottery system among students who apply, while others combine elements of competitive entrance and

1680-636: The top 100 public high schools in the United States. Examples of this type of school and program include the Maine School of Science and Mathematics , Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Virginia, The School Without Walls in the District of Columbia, and nine schools that all use competitive admissions and are overseen by the New York City Department of Education (which still uses

1722-569: The voluntary desegregation, districts started developing magnet schools to draw students to specialized schools all across their districts. Each magnet school would have a specialized curriculum that would draw students based on their interests. One of the goals of magnet schools is to eliminate, reduce, and prevent minority group isolation while providing the students with a stronger knowledge of academic subjects and vocational skills. Magnet schools still continue to be models for school improvement plans and provide students with opportunities to succeed in

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1764-471: Was contracted through LI & Associates, Inc. who has been monitoring the infrastructure and safety of the school since November 12, 2012. In the latest report dated January 7, 2014, the company, regarding the administrative building, stated, "During process of our seismic retrofit design on this building, we learned that this building does not have a valid DSA permit. Therefore, this building cannot be used by student per California State regulations." Due to

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