Schoolsearch2000: Rules are strict, clear at Seminole High

Rules are strict, clear at Seminole High

By ANDREW MEACHAM

SEMINOLE -- Laura Hopkins has two sons, freshman Jonathan and sophomore Jordan, who attend their zoned school, Seminole High.

They looked at alternatives first.

When Jordan was in middle school, Hopkins considered placing him in Lakewood High School's Center for Advanced Technologies. While Jonathan expressed no interest in a magnet, Jordan was attracted to the Criminal Justice Academy at Pinellas Park High.

"I discouraged that because I knew it was passing," Hopkins said. "I wanted Seminole's reputation, to have every educational opportunity available there."

She also wanted to avoid the loss of potential study time by having to travel each day to and from a magnet school that is farther away. "Most important as a parent, I could stay involved with the school and get a pulse with what's going on. You tend to lose that with teenagers."

Hopkins runs her own desktop publishing business, but has found the time to volunteer for school activities. She rates the level of parental involvement as "more than average."

"These are good schools," she said. "People buy homes in this area, so they can get Seminole status."

She likes the directness she finds in dealing with the school. The brochures on conduct and proper dress come home the first day of school. No bare shoulders or spaghetti straps. No underwear visible outside of clothing. Zero tolerance for fighting, drug or alcohol use, or sexual harassment -- punishable by a 10-day suspension or worse.

"They flat lay it out," she said. "They say, "Here are the rules, guys.' Any parent who doesn't take the time to talk to their kid about it is missing the boat."

The class schedule presents opportunities and challenges. Under Seminole's "four by four" system, students take fewer courses with double the intensity.

"You might take English and history the first half of the year and math and science the second," Hopkins said. That means that in a year's time, a student can master Spanish I and Spanish II. Each semester brings a sense of newness, she said, like starting another school year.

Hopkins said she wasn't sure at first how her sons would do in the new system.

"I kind of like it," she said. Jordan and Jonathan have not registered any complaints, either, apart from having to be at school at 7:20 a.m. Both are earning good grades, Jordan close to a 4.0 grade-point average. "One drawback is that if a kid gets sick and misses five days, it's like missing 10," Hopkins said.

A no-nonsense response to misbehavior helps make learning possible, she said. School literature outlaws students having cell phones, beepers, tape players or even televisions while at school. Also singled out are "profane, vulgar language," "racial or ethnic slurs," and sexual harassment, defined as "unwanted sexual attention from anyone within the school system or other students."

Reflecting on the decision to send her sons to a zoned school, Hopkins said, "It's almost as if not a lot of thought was given to it. I knew it was going to be Seminole. And I'm real happy with that."