Superintendent's Update - November 1, 2024

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Superintendent Austin’s Message . . .

Today I am writing about our new Palo Alto Middle College High School (PAMC) located at Foothill College. I was recently invited to have a conversation with some of our juniors at the program. The 30 minutes we spent together took me through a range of emotions and reflections. In this message, I am going to convey some of the things I heard directly from students. Some of these things were truly inspiring and some other parts were hard to hear. You may have some of the same reactions. Before I jump in, I want to thank the students for opening up and sharing their thoughts and experiences. It was my favorite 30 minutes of the entire school year.

I started by asking students to introduce themselves and share why they chose PAMC. They were instructed to be honest and not to say what they thought I might want to hear. They were also told that they didn’t need to share anything that was too personal. They didn’t hold back.

The top reason for choosing PAMC was to escape the constant competition of our comprehensive high schools. This should not be confused with looking for an easier path. In many circumstances, students were already in accelerated and AP courses. They expressed that they were in them for the wrong reasons. It wasn’t for the love of learning, but due to peer and family pressure to have the best GPA and positioning for college. Some of these students were actually in advanced tracks at PAMC that exceed what is offered on our other high school campuses. The difference was the why. These students picked courses they wanted to learn about and the pressure to take a class out of pressure melted away.

Some students really needed a smaller setting and a place where they felt more comfortable. As a student described, he knows everyone in his classes at PAMC which is a very different experience than his past. It was clear that PAMC has quickly created a community feeling where labels and assumptions have fallen away.  In fact, they shared that they have concerns about the future of PAMC.

I pushed on their fears for PAMC. As I stated in the beginning, not everything will be easy to hear. There was consensus that they feared parents would see PAMC as an acceleration route that would destroy the spirit of the school. They basically said that the course selection portion of the program is nice, but not what makes it special. The spirit of a small community where they can pursue things that fit their interest in a small setting is the magic.

One student bravely shared that he had struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts. The next part was fascinating. He said his high school had all the supports they could have put in place for his students. He said that wasn’t the issue. The issue was the larger culture of competition, social expectations, and constantly being ranked. I don’t want to provide any information that could identify this student. I will say this person has a very bright future with large aspirations. I can’t get the fact that his mental health was stretched so thin before that it could have ended tragically. I am sure he still struggles, but he said he feels like a new person in this setting.  

I asked the students what they thought about expanding the program for 9th  grade. That question received the most mixed response. Some argued that the transition from middle school to a college campus may be too much. Others thought that making kids experience a comprehensive high school setting as a “test” is simply cruel. All agreed that if parents are placing their kids in the program without buy-in from the kids, it will be a disaster.

It was not lost on the students that the staff also chose to go to PAMC and have a shared vision that is tougher to create in large high schools. While the staff is eclectic, their vision is consistent and engrained. There is a universal love for each other on this site that should be bottled and sold!

One student may return to the comprehensive high school next year, which is totally fine. It is not for everyone. I asked them all if they consider their experience to be more high school or college. The overwhelming response was that it was a college experience.  

I spoke to a teacher who said they have never felt more connected as a staff or with a group of students. The issues facing our school system in general are not necessarily more programs, courses, pacing, sequencing, or even philosophical. At the core, our culture is our issue. Unfortunately, culture is the hardest thing to change. There is no single source to point to when it comes to some of the unhealthy culture issues we have. Mental health won’t be solved through more therapists, later start times, or changes to grading systems. Therapists see kids who have already developed a need to see someone, meaning they are responses to an existing condition. Starting school later does nothing if kids are up until 2:00 in the morning doing homework or glued to devices. Evidence Based Grading does nothing if the conversation can’t get past how to convert a number to a traditional grade to support rankings.

It's campaign season, so we are all inundated with promises, pledges, and platforms at every level. Local, state, and national campaigns are all doing versions of the same thing. I’d like to share mine (although I am not an elected official). I want to know more about why PAMC is working. For decades, PAUSD and our community has not significantly changed the culture of our school system. There is a case to be made that it is actually worse when it comes to competition and clamoring for personal rankings. Healthy stress and pressure are facts of life and we should embrace that. Our students, however, can’t be clearer that we are not in a healthy place.  We are redlining in many places.  

The range of responses this update will get is probably a good barometer for our direction. It is what it is. From my seat, we need to get better. That’s not a 25 Churchill thing. It’s not a particular school site thing. It’s not a parent thing. It’s not a peer thing. It’s not a principal thing. It’s not a PAEA or CSEA thing. This is everyone. I will say it again, culture matters and it’s the last thing to change. Finger pointing and outsourcing are not the answers. If we take a minute to listen to our quiet kids with the same interest that we read adult postings online, we would probably be better off. I am committing to spending more time with the quiet people and creating space for kids to be kids.

Thank you again to PAMC students and for everyone who has helped to create something special. We have a lot to learn from this endeavor if we are simply willing to listen a little bit.