Schools

ABC Unified Announces Four New Magnet Schools for 2013-14 School Year

Palms Elementary School, Haskell Middle School, Gahr High School and Artesia High School will become magnet schools for the upcoming school year.

The ABC Unified School District has announced four new magnet schools for the 2013-2014 school year. With the inclusion of the new programs, ABC’s Magnet Schools will now offer full educational pathways for students who have interests in the arts, science, international studies, and accelerated learning. 

Palms Elementary School


Palms Elementary School in Lakewood is now an Accelerated Learning Academy, where students will focus on communication, connections to the real world, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking through the implementation of new challenging curriculum and rigor; what Palms calls “The 7 C’s of Accelerated Learning.” Students will also visit an Accelerated Learning Lab and will take part in the AVID Elementary program which focuses on study skills and college and career readiness. Sixth graders at Palms will be introduced to Pre-Advanced Placement curriculum. Additional use of iPads and technology in the classroom will prepare students for the implementation of the Common Core State Standards and the new Smarter Balanced Assessment.

Haskell Middle School


Haskell Middle School will become the first STEM Academy in the ABCUSD (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Through their new SMART Lab and Tech/Media Lab, students will take part in a series of dynamic cross-curricular projects including hydrogen and solar cell projects, robotics, roller coasters, CSI chemistry, recycled dragsters, balloon rocket race cars and many more. They will develop e-portfolios for all of their STEM projects, and work with advanced level technology programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, 3D Graphics Studio, Lego NXT Control System, Stop Motion Animation Software, Claymation Animation, and Microsoft Flight Simulator. Haskell students are taking a huge step in being prepared for the rigors of  21st century college and career.

Gahr High School


Gahr High School is now a STEAM Academy, (STEM, plus Arts). Their program forms the capstone for the arts and science magnet school pathways in ABC Unified. Students will be introduced to various academies as they begin their tenure at Gahr, and will have choices between several distinct and enriching programs. Gahr’s Art Academy has been in existence for some time now but the courses will now be infused with new technology, greater preparing young artists for the realities of college and career. Gahr will establish a new pathway of elective courses in the area of engineering utilizing the curriculum of the Project Lead the Way High School Pathway to Engineering Program. Courses in this STEM program will include Introduction to Engineering Design, Principles of Engineering, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and also Biomedical Sciences Program.  Students in Biology and Chemistry-based courses will connect learning to real life application in the biomedical field and students in Physics based courses will connect learning to real life applications in the engineering field in Gahr’s STEAM magnet program. 

Artesia High School


Artesia High School has transformed its magnet school program to become an Accelerated Learning and International Studies Academy. Their new program will focus on five key areas. The current selection of Advanced Placement classes will be expanded, giving students a greater opportunity to gain college credit while attending high school. To the same end, students will participate in a duel enrollment program with Cerritos College. Support and intervention programs will continue to be in place to assist students in being prepared for college and career upon graduation or sooner. In addition, the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program will also be offered as a capstone to the programs at Stowers Elementary and Fedde Middle School. Technology integration will continue to be increased throughout all areas of the Artesia campus. 

ABC’s Magnet Schools are open to ABC residents and also those residing outside of the ABC Unified School District. Magnet Schools have been chosen to develop rigorous innovative curriculum aligned with California Standards which to focus on specific themes that may be of particular interest to students. For further information, call the magnet school office at (562) 926-5566  ext. 21075


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