CSU Stanislaus plans classes at Ripon High

Manteca Bulletin 4/10/07

By Vince Rembulat

Plans are in the works to bring actual college courses to Ripon High.

Under a partnership with California State University, Stanislaus, the high school site would serve as a college satellite campus, according to RHS Principal Jeff Frase.
He mentioned at Tuesday's Ripon Unified school board meeting that he's met several times with officials from the Turlock campus to discuss the proposal.

"The courses (offered) would depend on the interest level of our students," Frase said.

Classes include public speaking, composition, astrology, geology, art history, and music fundamentals, to name a few.

Each three-unit class would cost about $100, with a possible set rate offered to those seeking to take more college units.

Frase said that students must pass these classes in order to receive the credits.

RHS and CSUS officials are still trying to hammer out the structure of this program prior to bringing in back before the board in the coming months for approval.

"We have to determine what's going to be a good fit for our students," said

Frase, indicating that students eligible for these college courses are usually the same ones involved in other school activities. CSUS instructors would handle the classes at RHS.

Local college professor George Condon is hoping that the program will soon be available to students in the district.

About a year ago, he discovered that 71 percent of RHS graduates expressed intentions of going to college, adding that fewer of those actually follow through on those plans.

"We have to do better than that," Condon said.

He indicated that the college attendance rate locally is among the lowest in the valley.

"Only 15 percent of those had parents who actually attended college," Condon said.

In order to bridge the gap, the longtime college professor believes that such a partnership would be a step in the right direction for the school district.