MARINA, Calif.- One Central Coast school is changing the way it's students are learning and it's partially to benefit their bottom line. Marina High School is starting off the year with some big changes and we found out why some parents are worried about the shift. Students are only eight days in and one parent is already concerned his daughter, a senior this year, may not be pushed to her full potential.
"Her taking five units is not as beneficial as taking eight units and with the down sizing of how they're structuring the whole school here, I think that you know it would be more beneficial if she took more," said Marina High School dad William Paris.
Paris said his daughter tried to add another class but it was full. The school is starting a curriculum called academy learning, or three groupings of classes. The idea is to focus their studies for life after high school. It's all in an effort to show the state it's trying new models of education in order to get more grant funding.
Marina High School students are also walking on campus to new leadership. Some parents said that's a lot of change for one year. New principal Sean Roach said his team is focused on making sure students thrive and he's getting a lot of support with the new learning approach.
"Today the A.S.B. had some lunchtime activities and it was a real sense of community. We had kids doing musical chairs," said principal Sean Roach.
But for parents like Paris, making sure his daughter makes the most of her senior year is a concern. Principal Roach said he's open to helping parents make sure that happens.
"I would love to speak with that parent. I would like to see if there's you know, what the exact situation is. So I cant really comment without knowing," Roach said.
The Monterey Peninsula Unified School District said their learning is more rigorous and it's all based on what they're interested in. Some students are at Concourso Italiano in Laguna Seca for the 2012 Classic Car Week, learning how to put on a big event as a part of their class.
