Traditional programs offered at 2 high schools

Dunedin and Osceola highs are the first in the county to start fundamental-style programs, with stricter standards for kids who thrive with extra attention.

By KELLY RYAN

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 18, 2000

Mallory Cyr blossomed in the fundamental academy at Dunedin Highland Middle School, becoming a conscientious student with skyrocketing grades.

"Being asked to behave and asked to follow through with homework and having someone on top of you requires students to mature," said Mallory's mother, Kathy. "I would recommend it, and I do."

This fall, Mallory and about 100 other ninth-graders will do what no Pinellas student has done before: attend a high school fundamental program.

Dunedin and Osceola high schools will run the county's first "traditional" programs for up to 60 ninth-graders apiece. Principals at both schools say that nurturing, structured programs will help students who otherwise might be overwhelmed making the transition to high school.

"Who would not want their child to be a part of a program like this?" asked Dunedin High principal Mildred Reed. "It's an asset to our high school."

Pinellas has seven fundamental schools -- five elementary and two middle -- that never have enough seats for all of the students who want to attend. Fundamental schools require students to follow strict dress and discipline policies and parents to stay actively involved in their child's education.

Students sign contracts saying they won't break the rules. If they do, they can be kicked out.

On and off for years, an organized and vocal group of parents has lobbied for a fundamental high school. Superintendent Howard Hinesley and School Board members have resisted the idea, not sure whether there would be enough interest to fill a 1,500-student high school.

There's also a legal barrier. A settlement in the district's desegregation case prohibits the creation of new countywide fundamental and magnet programs through 2007.

Undeterred, fundamental parents pressed on.

Last fall, Hinesley and School Board members endorsed the idea of opening fundamental programs within existing high schools, as Dunedin Highland did at the middle school level. That approach costs the district nothing and lets students assigned to the school decide whether to participate.

Those who do will find the rules strict and the teachers demanding.

"It's kind of reverting back to the way things used to be," said Kevin Hendrick, an American government teacher at Dunedin High. "The expectations of the students will be higher. We think the students will rise up to the challenge."

At Dunedin and Osceola, students in the traditional program will take their core academic courses (such as language arts, science and social studies) together. They will mingle with the rest of the school for electives and after-school clubs and sports.

Participants will follow the same dress code as the rest of the school -- only it will be more strictly enforced for them. Students will have to fill out daily planners and complete daily homework assignments, which their parents must review and sign. Teachers will fill out frequent progress reports and meet regularly with parents.

"It's a support system," said Osceola High principal Doug Smith. "The kids have told us they want their parents involved."

If students break the rules, they won't have to leave the school. They will just have to leave the program.

Program coordinators at each school are careful not to use the term "fundamental," but that's only because district administrators have cautioned against it. One of the few differences between a "fundamental school" and a "traditional program" is the admissions process.

Students who want to attend fundamental schools have to apply through a countywide lottery that every year leaves dozens disappointed. The traditional programs at Dunedin and Osceola are for any student who wishes to sign up and is zoned to attend either of those schools.

So far, 30 of 500 freshmen have signed contracts to participate in Dunedin's program. About 45 of 400 ninth-graders are committed to Osceola's.

"We're looking for the average students that want to have a little extra attention," said Margie Sundstrom, Osceola's assistant principal. "The students know that they perform better when someone is helping them."

This year, both schools are opening their traditional programs only to freshmen. In fall 2001, both will be open to sophomores, too. If there's enough interest, Dunedin High eventually might open the program to all grades, but Osceola plans to stop with 10th-graders.

School Board member Tom Todd won't be satisfied until three of the district's 16 high schools are entirely fundamental. But he couldn't be happier that some fundamental parents can finally find what they are looking for at Osceola and Dunedin.

He's hopeful that other schools will follow their lead by 2003, when the district starts letting parents choose where their children go to school.

"It's maybe not for everybody, but for those who want that, it's wrong if we don't give them the opportunity," Todd said. "I know what the results will be. Those students are going to do extremely well."

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