One-hundred and fifty-five freshman stepped onto the campus of Harmony Magnet Academy for the first day of school Monday, taking their first steps toward high-tech jobs in engineering and performing arts.

A dedication ceremony for the newly built and somewhat unfinished high-tech high school was held Aug. 13 in the sweeping multi-purpose facility as a student string ensemble played a medley of classic and contemporary music.

Dr. Tony Monreal, deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction with the California Department of Education, said growing up in the Valley, he is aware of the obstacles in education that most rural communities face.

ìOur kids have all the potential in the world it is just a matter of having the right tools and opportunity to help them succeed,î Monreal said. ìThis school will feed the minds of these students so they can continue to feed the Valley with ideas as we continue to feed the world [in agriculture],î Monreal said.

Monreal, who works with Career Technical Education facilities grants, said that signing the legislation that provides funding for schoolís such as Harmony is one of his proudest moments while working in the Department of Education. The grant provided $1 million for specialized equipment, including video production software, a machine used to cut patterns in almost any kind of material and a state-of-the-art 3-D modeling machine that actually takes blueprints and creates a Continued from page A1

plastic model with moveable parts.

ìHope is the pathway to harmony,î said Monreal in both English and Spanish, referring to the schoolís purpose and name.

The school is named after Harmony Grammar School, which taught students in the area from 1871-1945, when it became part of Sunnyside School District. The building was used as a community center until it burned in 1983. Frances Della, one of about 30 alumni of the school, presented a framed oil painting of the old schoolhouse to Principal Mike Hensen, who announced that the schoolís mascot will be the Harmony Knights.

Hensen said the students at Harmony would be ìchallenged and frustratedî over the next four years. They will attend school seven periods per day, take English and math courses all four years and four to eight courses in their career pathway. A typical freshman course schedule includes geometry or algebra 2, chemistry, foreign language, English and literatyre, physical education. In addition, students will take four to six classes in engineering or performing arts, such as graphic arts and presentation, music keyboarding skills, computer integrated manufacturing and biotechnical engineering.

ìAll of these students are preparing for a future of their choosing, not one they will have to settle for,î Hensen said. ìIt is my honor to serve as principal of Harmony.î

A group of about 20 of the schoolís students from throughout Porterville Unified School District sat across from state, local and school officials wearing teale T-shirts with black writing (the schoolís colors) that read: High Expectations, Master Through Demonstration, Academic Excellence.î

Freshman Jaz Kemp of Springville said she was going to take performing arts courses to pursue a career in acting, such as stage craft and technology.

ìThis school is a new opportunity for me to pursue my career,î she said.

Derek Kirk, also a freshman at Harmony, said he was excited about taking courses for video production. He said the class will eventually produce a daily video news show about upcoming events and activities at the school using six mini digital videocameras, teleprompters and video software.

ìWe will have small classes and lots of one-on-one time with teachers to really learn about our career,î said Kirk, who attended Sequoia Middle School, which is architecturally identical to Harmony. ìThis school is really hands on. Iím so excited I can hardly wait.î

The $19 million campus was Californiaís first school to be built with a Small High School Construction Pilot Program grant. Financial support for the engineering program was also providing by the National Academy Foundation, Project Lead The Way and the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering.

President J.D. Hoye said the national Academy Foundation was created as a partnership between business leaders and educators to address the need to prepare students for professional careers. Hoye said PUSDís diligence in pursuing all these partnerships is an accomplishment the community of Strathmore should be proud of.

ìPeople in other communities aspire to do what you have accomplished,î Hoye said. ìThis is a great example of a community that believes in the future and that tomorrow can be different.î

Hoye said that more than 1.2 million students drop out of school each year without obtaining their high school diploma. A high school diploma allows a student to earn an extra $1 million over their lifetime. A diploma from Harmony, may allow them to make much more. Unlike a traditional high school, academies prepare students for jobs that donít even exist yet in developing fields.

ìYou are actually breaking the mold of whatís possible for high school students in this community and their future,î she said.

PUSD Board President Pete Lara, Jr., who graduated from Strathmore High School in 1975, said he didnít completely understand the concept of a magnet academy until speaking with the foundation and other school administrators.

ìThere is nothing like this anywhere else in Tulare County,î Lara said.

He said joining PUSD in 2002 was a struggle at first, but has helped improve education by offering more classes, sports and extracurricular activities to Strathmore students.

ìWe are trying to enchance the venues here for kids so that when they graduate they come back and stay to be our leaders of tomorrow,î Lara said.

Part of the requirements for Harmony students is to obtain a paid internship during the summer between their junior and senior years. Lara said the City of Porterville, local businesses and elected officials have already stepped up to offer positions for their students.

Allen Ishida, District 1 supervisor on the Tulare County Board of Supervisors, publically offered to provide a paid internship to students. Ishida, who is also a Strathmore High School graduate, said he was surprised that Harmony was not a vocational school, but that the skills learned at Harmony would instead lead to higher paying jobs.

ìI never imagined a state-of-the-art facility like this would exist in Strathmore,î Ishida said. ìNormally this type of funding goes to the urban areas and small towns like Strathmore get left out. We desperately needed something like this in Strathmore.î

Ishida, who attended SHS with only 325 other students, said the small class sizes such as Harmonyís offer an educational experience that canít be matched by larger districts.

ìHere you are more than just a number,î Ishida said. ìBy having time to work one-on-one with teachers and get exposure to their field through internships is invaluable.î

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