Introduction of Basic Plus program at 6th grade in Santa Clara Middle Schools

Hello Parents living in Santa Clara Unified School District,

As parents, we are all deeply committed to providing the best educational opportunities to our children. A well rounded academic development during the child's elementary, middle and high school years prepares & encourages them for a successful college education.

In Santa Clara School District (SCUSD), only one of the 4 middle schools (Peterson Middle School) offers a basic plus program at 6th grade and honors programs in 7th and 8th grades. Parents interested in providing an academic edge for their children have been utilizing this program, in the past. Unfortunately, admission into this program for students whose home school is not Peterson middle, is a two step process as explained below.

The 1st step is purely based on chance, decided by the open enrollment process. As per the SCUSD statistics, this year 155 students applied for enrollment into Peterson, and only 49 got admitted via the random selection process; meaning only 1 out of 3 applicants gets selected in the 1st step. The 2nd step is to apply separately for admission into the Basis plus 6th grade class in Peterson middle. The decision here is on a first come first served basis.

As evident above, the students whose home school is Peterson middle have a clear advantage, compared to others, in getting admitted into the only basic plus and honors middle school program available in SCUSD. We believe that every parent in SCUSD should have a fair opportunity to get their child into the basic plus program. Based on this belief, we request you to extend your support to the following petition, that would be sent to SCUSD board around May 8th 2008.