Preuss School

A group of faculty members at the University of California, San Diego, first conceived the idea of establishing a college-preparatory school for minority groups after California Proposition 209, a state measure that banned the use of affirmative action, passed in 1996. It was their belief, as expressed by Cecil Lytle, provost of Thurgood Marshall College, that public universities were not active enough in creating educational opportunities for the state's most disadvantaged youth. Faculty members Hugh Mehan and Peter Gourevitch proposed establishing a college-preparatory school that would admit only low-income youths with the potential of becoming first-generation college students. In 1997, the proposal was sent to the Regents of the University of California for approval. The regents, citing concerns over fiscal responsibility and oversight, rejected the proposal. Following the Regents' vote, Lytle, Mehan, and Gourevitch made changes to their plan. After funding was obtained in 1998, the school began accepting applications. When Gompers first opened, much of its curriculum, faculty development, and community outreach plans were based on those in place at Preuss. Southeastern San Diego–based Lincoln High also used Preuss as a guide, and the University of California, Davis, (UC Davis) and the University of California, Berkeley, (UC Berkeley) studied it while designing their own high schools for disadvantaged youth. ==Facilities==

From its conception, it was decided that it would be best for the school to be situated on the UCSD campus. An early CREATE report authored by Bud Mehan stated that "operating on university grounds acts to integrate students into the culture of learning associated with a university campus" and that this location allows for "UCSD students to serve as role models for the students they tutor." Despite this goal, finding available space on UCSD's campus for a full high school facility proved challenging. For the first year of its existence, Preuss was housed on the campus of the Thurgood Marshall College, in a temporary bungalow facility known as "La Casa", surrounded by eucalyptus trees and within walking distance of UCSD's main library, Geisel Library. The campus cost about $14 million, all of which was procured from community donors and organizations during a five-month fundraising campaign. The campus has five buildings for classrooms; each building has six classrooms, three on the first story and three on the second. The one exception to this is the science building, which requires more room for labs and hence has four  rooms in its building. The campus includes the main office; a gymnasium used for assemblies, physical education, theatre performances, and choirs; an outdoor cafeteria and amphitheater; a library that includes a media and resource center; and a lacrosse and soccer facility. The front of the school includes a loading and unloading dock for the school buses. While an open campus for its initial years, by the 2006 school year the Preuss campus was fenced around the perimeter. During the 2007 school year, a secondary physical education field was paved over and converted to two additional bungalow buildings intended to be used for music and the arts. ==Admissions==

Annually, Preuss receives 800 applications from fifth graders for 110 spots in the incoming sixth-grade class. Preuss selects from this pool via a blind lottery. To be eligible for the lottery an applicant must meet three criteria: the student must qualify for federal free- or reduced-price lunches under the National School Lunch Act, the student's primary guardians must not be college graduates, and the student must demonstrate proper motivation, through elementary school academic records and through completion of an admissions application which includes essays and teacher recommendations. Preuss primarily recruits applicants at elementary and junior high schools in low-income parts of SDUSD and the Sweetwater Union High School District. Preuss staff visit these schools and present to parents and teachers, in both English and Spanish, about the mission of the school and the application process. Preuss staff are also responsible for distributing application materials to local churches and libraries and community organizations like the San Diego Urban League and the Parent Institute. ==Academics==

The Preuss curriculum is shaped around college preparatory course requirements known within the University of California and California State University system as A–G courses. Preuss also takes the pedagogical position that all students should be allowed to take the same courses. As such, Preuss has an untracked curriculum that requires all students to attend the same college preparatory courses. On the Preuss campus, students study basic algebra, geometry, pre-calculus, and calculus, and later can take more advanced courses on the UCSD campus, which they travel to via shuttle. As a result of these required courses, 100% of Preuss graduates complete the A–G course list. Only 38% of San Diego Unified students do the same. The class of 2007 surpassed these numbers when 96 percent of its members gained admission to four-year universities. In 2011, 95 percent of graduates were admitted to four-year universities with 79 percent of graduates matriculating to one. 19 percent of the class of 2011 attended a community college. As a result, Preuss' annual instruction time is 74,669 minutes compared to SDUSD's average of 64,800 minutes. Each block lasts 90 minutes which is 30 more minutes than the average school day. During its early years, Preuss ran on a trimester system to match that of UCSD. In 2006, the school switched to a semester system. Faculty The tasks of the faculty members at Preuss extend beyond teaching. On Fridays, the teachers meet for two  hours to discuss staff development, trends in education, and student work, and each teacher creates an annual portfolio to present to the rest of the faculty at the end of the year. In addition to the faculty, Preuss students benefit from partnerships established between the school and UCSD. Each trimester, UCSD provides nearly 100 classroom tutors to Preuss through a university course on educational equity. Its students' results in the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program, the California Standards Test (CST), and the University of California college preparatory (A–G) requirements were higher than those of other schools with similar student populations. These results led San Diego Magazine to name Preuss one of the city's great schools. Preuss has also been the recipient of national recognition. Since 2007, Preuss has ranked as a top 50 high school in the rankings released by both Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. Its highest ranking came in 2008 when it placed sixth in Newsweeks rankings. Preuss has accumulated similar accolades from more education-focused institutions. In 2007, Preuss was one of 53 charter schools to receive the Center of Education Reform's Distinguished School status. In June 2012, the University of Southern California Center for Educational Governance, using a methodology focused not just on academic performance but also accountability and fiscal stability, ranked Preuss the best charter school in the state of California. ==Student life==

Athletics Preuss requires physical education through the tenth grade. Students may choose to opt-out and take another elective or try out for one of Preuss' five athletic teams. All Preuss teams compete in Division IV of the San Diego Section of the California Interscholastic Federation. Offered sports include soccer, basketball, and lacrosse for boys and girls, as well as volleyball for girls only. In addition, Varsity Squash is offered through Access Youth Academy (AYA). The only sport to play at the national level, the program holds 13 national titles. Clubs A majority of Preuss clubs and organizations meet after school until 5:20 p.m., when the late-activity buses take up to 256 students home. A large number of the clubs are science-related. Robotics is popular on the Preuss' campus, which has teams that compete in robotics-related events sponsored by For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST), as well as teams that compete in Botball games played by robots they have built. Internships For four years running, the Preuss School has collaborated with the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute on an internship program. The internship program allows students to work on various projects at the Sanford Burnham laboratory, with the goal of inspiring students to become interested in science-related careers. The internship program is funded by Sanford Burnham Trustee Peter Preuss and his wife, Peggy, and Chair Wain Fishburn and his wife, Debby. Preuss also has long-standing relationships with various academics departments at UCSD. These departments accept Preuss students as interns as a part of the senior wheel elective. ==See also==