Mission Statement

The mission of University High School is to provide an accelerated college preparatory education with a special focus on music. Students will receive a strong foundation in music and in the liberal arts and sciences in a small high school environment while benefiting from the opportunities available on a large public university campus.

Vision Statement

University High School (UHS) is a new charter school designed to provide superior learning opportunities by embracing the best practices in school reform efforts. Teachers and students will learn in a technologically rich, project-driven environment. University High School will serve as a working model for educational innovation and act as a resource for other schools and districts. The school will model effective university-district partnerships in 9-16 education and will become a center for teacher training in music and secondary school academic subjects. University High School will be a non-profit organization housed under the auspices of the School of Arts and Humanities at California State University, Fresno.

Whom Will the School Educate?

University High School will educate up to 400 diverse students in grades nine through twelve who seek a rigorous, accelerated college preparatory curriculum with an added emphasis on music performance, history, and theory. The school will recruit a diverse student body from middle schools throughout Fresno and Madera Counties, a region that currently sends less than 4% of its high school graduates to the University of California. By serving students who are interested in serious study of music, the school will provide a new choice to underserved music students in the region. The school will also provide an opportunity for students who wish to accelerate their high school program and earn significant college credit while still in high school. As a charter school, UHS will be free of charge and eligible students will be admitted by lottery.

How University High School Will Develop

To be eligible for admission, students must meet the standard of intermediate music proficiency as established by the National Association for Music Education (normally the equivalent of 2 years of public school instruction in instrumental music), and they must have passed Algebra 1. Efforts will be made to include a diversity of musical instruments. In fall semester 2000, 60 to 100 high school freshmen will be enrolled at UHS full-time. In fall 2001, those freshmen will become sophomores and a new cohort of freshmen will be added. In fall 2002, a third class will be added, and by fall 2003 there will be four grades. When complete, University High School will have a cap of 400 students.

Contacts

For further information, please contact Dr. Vida Samiian, associate dean of the Fresno State School of Arts and Humanities, at (559) 278-7069, or Dr. Wendy Costa, coordinator of University High School, at 278-2540.