Santa Ana Unified: Creating Incredible Pathways for Students

Matt Coleman April 28, 2017

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An April 24, 2017 article in Getting Smart, “Santa Ana Unified Creating Incredible Pathways for Students K-12,” features Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) and includes Inflexion’s work with Valley High School over the past three years (2014-2017).

The district is providing incredible learning environments for K–12 students, and EPIC* has been instrumental in creating change in one school: Valley High School. We have been strategic in supporting Valley in three areas: (1) developing a shared positive language and culture; (2) transitioning Valley to a wall-to-wall academy; and (3) implementing an adolescent literacy development plan focused on universal (schoolwide) strategies that support all students every period, every day. You can read more about our work on wall-to-wall academies in this blog post, or about our work helping shape Valley’s culture here.

More students are graduating from SAUSD schools and persisting in college than ever before. The graduation rate in SAUSD is 91.6%, higher than the average of both Orange County and the State of California, despite significantly higher ELL and poverty percentages than both. Valley High School’s graduation rate is on par with the district rate, and its dropout rate has decreased to 4.5%.

Our work with Valley has been an incredible journey and learning experience. We have built relationships with students, staff, and families that propelled the work forward, and we are proud to be part of the school improvement efforts. Take a look at the full article, as it provides a great example of how a district can support individual schools to build pathways toward success for all students. It’s exciting for us to see our fingerprints on the work, including photos of wall graphics and classroom posters designed by Inflexion’s own Curt and Carmen! We continue to be inspired by the commitment of the school and district staff we have worked with in SAUSD, and we look forward to continuing to learn from and with their progress.

*At the time of this story in April 2017, Inflexion was still EPIC School Partnerships (ESP)

Categories: Blog Posts

Matt Coleman

Career Academies at Valley High School

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Carmen Gelman November 30, 2016

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Black female student with her head down while handwriting. Other students blurred in the background are also handwriting.

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Inflexion April 5, 2023

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Valley High School: Teaching Literacy Every Period, Every Day

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Inflexion July 20, 2017

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Inflexion June 7, 2023

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Professional with dark shoulder-length hair points to a computer screen with graphs on it. A second screen shows a calendar.

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Vanessa Brazil October 25, 2022

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Black woman rests her head in her hand with her eyes closed expressing exhaustion.

Teacher Burnout: Addressing Educator Exhaustion

Educator (and support staff) exhaustion is nothing new, though it has arguably accelerated exponentially over the past few years with no signs of slowing. In order for teachers/staff to best support and care for their students, they need to feel supported and cared for.

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Inflexion February 24, 2023

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