Dublin’s Second High School Option is Already Here
Livermore Valley Charter Preparatory High School (LVCP) is a new, tuition-free, state-approved public high school set to start the first day of instruction on Tuesday, August 24, 2010. LVCP is still accepting students through its rolling open enrollment process. Families in Dublin now have the second high school option they have been clamoring for all these years. Registration is first-come, first-served; enrollment is limited. “Based on how enrollment has been progressing, we will likely be full by August 15,” said Bill Batchelor, the Chief Operations Officer of the Tri-Valley Learning Corporation (TVLC), the same not-for-profit organization that will be leading the Tassajara Prep charter petition to the State Board of Education for approval.
Located at 2451 Portola Avenue in Livermore, LVCP is just two freeway exits down from the Fallon Road interchange along I-580 East and about 5 minutes drive from Livermore’s Costco. Many families in Dublin actually live closer to LVCP than Dublin High School. “The recent opening of Dublin Boulevard and Central Parkway to Fallon Road by the City of Dublin has made LVCP a realistic option for many families in Dublin,” said Batchelor.
Given that Tassajara Prep is set to open in Fall 2012, the Founders of Tassajara Prep have always recognized that some families in Dublin cannot wait that long. The Founders have been working very closely with LVCP Principal Dr. Jeffrey Watkins and Counselor Angela Tang to make sure these families know that incoming 9th graders in Dublin already have a real choice in their high school education. “LVCP probably has the best facility of any charter school in the state, and we are excited to be able to start serving the families in Dublin now, two years before Tassajara Prep comes online,” said Dr. Watkins.
Since June, Dr. Watkins and the LVCP staff have been welcoming prospective students, parents, and interested community members at Open House events. Although the first day of classes is not until the end of August, LVCP students have already completed one week of a free, voluntary summer session that will last through the end of July.
Every student at LVCP will be moving on to a traditional four-year college. That is the high expectation we have for our students.”
– Dr. Jeffrey Watkins, Principal of LVCP
Science teacher Raj Virk, Math teacher Kelly Radimer, Music and Technology teacher Colin Dean, English teacher Justin Guerra, Social Science teacher Rashida Haveliwala, and Counselor Angela Tang all hold masters degrees in addition to their California teaching credentials, so they can teach college-accredited courses. By the 2012-2013 school year, when the incoming 9th graders reach the 11th grade, LVCP will have partnerships in place with regional higher education institutions including California community colleges like Las Positas College, Diablo Valley College, and Ohlone College; California State University at East Bay, San Jose, and San Francisco; University of California at Berkeley, Davis, and Santa Cruz; and private universities like Stanford University, University of San Francisco, University of the Pacific, Mills College, and St. Mary’s College. These partnerships will form the cornerstone of the LVCP College Pathways Program, in which LVCP juniors and seniors are expected to take college-accredited courses. “The LVCP College Pathways Program replaces the Advanced Placement class model, where students can take a class and at the end of the year take a test to try to earn college credit,” said Dr. Watkins. “Our college-accredited courses will require more work from the students than the conventional AP classes, but they will also get real college credits upon course completion. My teachers and I are fully committed to the success of every student who chooses to come to LVCP.”
COO Bill Batchelor proudly holding the netbook computer that will be issued to every LVCP student
One misconception about charter high schools is that they are too small to offer any athletic program. “We plan to participate in every sport for which we have enough student interest to form a team,” said Mike Burstein, LVCP’s Physical Education teacher and Athletic Director.
In addition to a comprehensive high school program, LVCP will issue each incoming student a netbook computer that includes prepaid mobile broadband service and has all the class textbooks preloaded. “We have to understand that today’s students learn in a vastly different world,” said Batchelor.
LVCP’s class sizes in the first year of operation will range from 22 to 25 students, which is significantly smaller than most public high school classes. The smaller class size will enable much more individual attention for each student. According to LVCP’s charter, the student-to-teacher ratio will never exceed 27:1. For the 2010-2011 school year, LVCP will open to a class of 110 students. In subsequent years, the new public high school plans to expand to a maximum of 270 students at each grade level. At capacity, LVCP will serve 1,080 students.
10:15 AM on July 12th, 2010
I see a lot of schools giving out netbooks etc, & I have to wonder, is it a good use of schools money? Possibly in lower income areas but I wouldn’t have thot having a computer at home with internet access would be a problem for most students of this school, and those that it is, fine, let them apply for the netbook & let the other 95% use their own computer at home. Thots? I would be very upset if the DUSD started giving these out to everyone.
10:36 AM on July 12th, 2010
Paul, please name the “lots of schools” that are giving out the laptops. I think it’s still pretty rare for schools to give out laptops, but the good schools are doing so more and more. Since you seem like a fiscal hawk for the district, let me ask you this question. Do you think it’s a good use of district money to send kids to Disneyland? Compared to that, I think one laptop per child is a better investment.
11:30 AM on July 14th, 2010
Wow, what an angry person. If you think spending money on netbooks & broadband for all students is a good use of money when the vast majority are completely unnecessary then that is fine, you are entitled to your opinion as am I. I’m off to do something productive..
11:37 AM on July 12th, 2010
Isn’t that the location of an elementary school? LVCP took over the elementary school after it was closed down? Has renovation been done to make it more suitable for a high school?
1:32 PM on July 12th, 2010
netbooks are crap. can’t run word processor, edit or play video. who is paying for the prepaid mobile broadband service?
2:22 PM on July 12th, 2010
That was true when they first came out about three years ago, but today there are many powerful netbooks on the market that can do almost anything a good laptop can. It really depends on the specifications they choose to use.
3:06 PM on July 12th, 2010
This is entertaining – can’t meet your enrollment goals w/the Livermore kids so your trying to advertise your school as the second “option” for Dublin? Great, now that we have that excellent 2nd option, drop the petition in Dublin and stop wasting time and taxpayer money. Love the “anonymous” responses too. Which of the two LVCP supporters could it be? Hmmmm the Around Dublin Blogger himself or his trusty side-kick and “Yes Man” G.W.?
As for the school supplied notebooks, they are a great idea for low-income students that can’t afford them w/in their own family means. Every student should have access. However, I agree that it would not be a good use of public funding for the majority of Dublin students whose parent are perfectly capable of providing the tools needed. The suggestion goes hand-in-hand w/LVCP – a gaggle of wealthy shmucks that are too cheap to fund their children’s private schooling – better to syphon tax dollars and create a profit-profit situation for yourselves. Really, why buy a notebook for your child when you can get it on the taxpayer’s dime? If you truly want to make sure no child is left behind – direct your efforts, energy and our tax dollars to the underserved in Dublin and Alameda County. Why don’t you purchase some of those snazzy notebooks and donate them to the school in Oakland that serves young parents?
BTW – the Disneyland funding is provided by parents, boosters, etc…you might find more friends in the community if you ceased insulting the very parents you hope to woo.
3:30 PM on July 12th, 2010
“As for the school supplied notebooks, they are a great idea for low-income students that can’t afford them w/in their own family means.”
Does Dublin provide laptops for its low-income kids? Instead of wasting money on a forgettable trip to Disneyland, find something more worthwhile to do with those dollars and not raise everyone’s property tax.
3:53 PM on July 12th, 2010
What exactly are you trying to accomplish by attacking John Z. anonymously? Does it make you feel better about the fact that you have a tendency to ejaculate prematurely over news that aren’t? Back when the principal and James were commenting everyday, they at least tried to inject some data into the discussion. Of course most were intentionally misleading and no one believes them but that’s besides the point. At least they were civil. All trash like you manage to do is to make the anti charter school fringe group look sad by keep coming back. Who is the desperate one here? Keep it up. The more hate mongers like you spew, the better John Z. looks.
5:10 PM on July 12th, 2010
Classy response. You managed to work spew and premature ejaculation into the same comment. It could only have been better if the response were at least moderately literate.
LVCP has cornered the market on false data and unsubstantiated figures – but that’s the beauty of statistics – given the right twist one can make the numbers say just about anything.
6:52 PM on July 12th, 2010
Actually, most school districts got the market cornered on misleading statistics. Let’s not forget how Dublin keeps saying 98% of kids go on to college when only 95% do…and most are to community colleges. Also, we are still waiting on Dublin High on the D-list. Come on, where are they? It’s been like a month right?
5:14 PM on July 12th, 2010
Well said. I will not be even surprised if this Anonymous is actually James Lesshead himself.
5:26 PM on July 12th, 2010
What an unfortunate name indeed.
2:10 AM on July 14th, 2010
John has another ‘Yes man’ – OD’ed on OD. Or maybe that’s also G.W.
9:04 PM on July 14th, 2010
James, I did not even want to talk with you, but I want to stop you from spreading the misleading information. I do not need to be as shady and shameless as you to use Anonymous IDs to attack John Z. I have never used this ID. Period.
12:32 PM on July 15th, 2010
You are not a yes man – you only like John’s every post in facebook. George Wu likes this. George Wu likes this. George Wu likes this…
12:49 PM on July 15th, 2010
…and you follow the Around Dublin Blog and monitor the fan page for everyone’s ‘likes’? I’d say you are just as creepy as the Moreheads.
2:05 PM on July 15th, 2010
I like John Z’s every post. So what? Does that bother you? Do you have any post that you can impress me so I can like it too? Now I know you are bothered by this, I will like John Z’s posts even more often. Just suck it up.
3:51 PM on July 12th, 2010
Regarding LVCP, I’d be interesting in two stats:
1. As of right now, exactly how many students have enrolled at LVCP?
2. Of those enrolled, how many are among the 100 or so students who have just graduated from LVCS?
I’m hopeful that LVCP organizers can provide this info. It seems to me that both numbers would be instructive. The first would speak to the viability of LVCP’s offering, and the second would give us an idea of the satisfaction level among those who have experienced a TVLC school.
4:57 PM on July 12th, 2010
Again, Dublin schools do not raise property taxes to fund trips to Disneyland. The parents, boosters et al work to fund those events. I take exception to the belittling of the school because the opportunity is provided to attend Disneyland through band events; will you also look for opportunities to disparage the students’ opportunity to perform in New York? Again, the very parents you wish to woo fund these events. In addition, these high-profile schools you salivate for really do prefer the well-rounded student; not only does that includes GPA & test scores but extracurricular activities including band, sports, volunteerism. Dublin High School provides all of these and meets the needs of our community. There is nothing “forgettable” about a trip to Disneyland (or any other location) with your peers; it is a reward for a job well done and an experience they will carry with them for years.
So while your statement is utterly fallacious, we can agree that it would be an excellent idea if low-income students could receive free or low-cost laptops and something that should certainly be broached with the parent groups, boosters or even a potential corporate partnership. In fact, that would be an excellent idea to fund w/in a parcel tax.
That said, any parcel tax is voted on and approved by the Dublin community and if passed that is because it has received support from said community. Because the community supports our highschool; it does not support your Charter School. LVCP has yet to provide a valid argument to support the creation of TP it relies purely on false arguments.
It would be an abuse of tax-payer money to fund a charter school for the elite and divert funds from the highschool; potentially limiting the school’s ability to provide a quality education to the rest of the community.
5:24 PM on July 12th, 2010
What do you mean by “abuse of taxpayer money”? Those “elites” called by you also pay their fair share of tax (and most likely more than that you pay), don’t they? They have the right to take their children’s money to whichever public school they attend.
5:27 PM on July 12th, 2010
Another point is that charter school uses less of taxpayer money. So who is the one that is abusing taxpayer money?
6:46 PM on July 12th, 2010
Exactly. The District can’t keep their cost down since they waste money on frivilous things like trips to Disneyland and not textbooks.
7:11 PM on July 12th, 2010
This is quite humorous – “There is nothing “forgettable” about a trip to Disneyland (or any other location) with your peers – it is a reward for a job well done and an experience they will carry with them for years.”
So we do fantastic jobs at work but we don’t get trips or bonuses. Layoffs are still happening across the East Bay. Our families need to adjust the way we spend our money. Companies are even cutting pay. And what does DUSD do? They send kids to Disneyland! It doesn’t matter what the funding source – to encourage that kind of fiscal behavior to our kids at this time when even we, as parents, are cutting back, is irresponsible.
What kind of message are we sending to our kids? Maybe we’re all the “elite” since the rules don’t seem to apply to us, even the person who write the original statement?
8:41 PM on July 12th, 2010
I totally agree. That is exactly the point. Trips to Disneyland are more important than books and learning. No wonder Dublin schools are in the pits.
2:14 AM on July 14th, 2010
LVCP – Dublin’s Second High School Option – ROTFLOL!
John, why don’t you move to Livermore? Seems you have sold your soul to Bill. Disgusting for a Dublin Rotary president.
6:59 AM on July 14th, 2010
Hi Anonymous – I have good news. Last night’s LVCP open house was a big success. There was nearly a full house and quite a few of the attendees were Dublin parents and students. LVCP program is a game-changer for the Tri-Valley, so it isn’t a surprise that Dublin students are enrolling.
Thx, John Z.
8:00 AM on July 14th, 2010
I have an incoming 9th grader this year but I would rather choose a well established high school than LVCP. I am not against LVCP..maybe in 5 years time, it will be great. I just don’t feel comfortable having a freshman start at LVCP this year..Yes, I do have some reservations about Dublin high, mainly the fact that construction is still going on – but I do believe if the student is motivated, they can make anything out of their high school experience and can attend ANY college they want to. The core programs offered at Dublin high WILL meet any college prep requirements. Also the district (like Pleasanton and few others) is very receptive of offering credit through courses earned in other programs like berkeley over summer.
9:05 AM on July 14th, 2010
The operative word in your comment is choice, right? Before we had none, now we do. As excited as I am about this second option, I rather the news had been about Tassajara Prep, but it is definitely a step in the right direction.
3:49 PM on July 15th, 2010
I think these losers are just jealous of where Around Dublin is on Google. Any search related to Dublin CA pulls up Around Dublin on the first page. At this point, personal insults are the only option they have, as they desperately try to make this website look bad. Of course, that just means most people will tune the comments out and focus on the articles themselves.
Still, I do wish John Z. would do something to moderate the comments, because like OD said, these degenerates are not making DHS look good at all, and that’s a real shame.
3:11 PM on July 20th, 2010
Families in Dublin do not now have the second high school option they have been clamoring for all these years. The Livermore Valley Charter Preparatory High School is in Livermore. Dublin is not in Livermore.
5:30 PM on July 20th, 2010
You are right. That is why we still need Tassajara Prep.
9:44 AM on July 22nd, 2010
Vince wrote “The Livermore Valley Charter Preparatory High School is in Livermore. Dublin is not in Livermore.”
True but it is a charter school so is open to everybody, not just Livermore, so Dublin parents now have another public high school to choose. I measured with my car and LVCP is about the same from our condo as Dublin High. At the open house there are rumors that LVCP will be moving next year much closer to Dublin. If so it will be much closer than Dublin High. There is no track record for LVCP, but it is very impressive at the open house. It is probably going to be a great school. Academic performance for Dublin High is not improving like we were promised (SAT and AP scores), so LVCP sound even better.
10:07 AM on July 22nd, 2010
“T” wrote that Dublin parents now have another high school to choose from. That’s true, plus when Tassajara Prep opens in 2012, Dublin parents will have 3 public high schools to choose from. Just pick the one that’s the best fit for your kid. If you are not happy with your kid’s current high school, transfer him or her to one of the other high schools. What a wonderful situation to be in! Until now we had no choice but Dublin HS.
8:22 AM on July 22nd, 2010
How did the “happiest place on earth” get dragged into this train wreck? The Disneyland trip is not funded by the school district. Parents pay for their child to go on the trip or they fundraise. In fact, I can’t think of one “field trip” that I as a parent did not have to pay for.
6:49 PM on July 22nd, 2010
Aw, come on folks. Don’t drag “the happiest place on earth” into this train wreck of a debate. The Disneyland trip is entirely paid for by the parents and/or students who may fund raise in order to represent their school in band competition. There is not one field trip that my kids ever went on that was funded by the school district. Parents foot the bill for these types of experiences for their children. Not complaining, just saying.
11:37 PM on August 6th, 2010
The first poster on this thread suggested that netbooks and broadband service for all students were a waste of the school’s money. I totally agree with this. It just makes no sense when most people have a PC and internet service already. I have yet to read a single post here that tells me why spending money on something like this makes sense. Anyone?
PLEASE no charter school vs. public school…not interested…just answer the question.
10:22 AM on August 8th, 2010
Dear One Dublin High School Zealot,
You call the issuing of netbooks and broadband service to all students at Livermore Valley Charter Prep a waste of money. You are either deliberately being disingenuous (most likely) or you’ve never worked for a real business (also apparently quite likely). Would you suggest that it is a waste of money for Chevron to issue computers to its employees, since most of them already own computers? Do you know anything about managed desktops, data security, firewalls, authentication, remote backup, thin clients, mirrored images, blade servers, software distribution, network asset management, etc? Apparently not, which tells me that you are probably a DUSD employee or on the DUSD Board of Trustees.
Try learning how LVCP students will be using the netbooks before you post any more ignorant comments. The netbooks will play an integral role in LVCP students’ class work every day. As just one small example, the netbooks will replace all textbooks, so there will be no more heavy backpacks or expensive textbooks that need to be replaced every few years. There’s a reason home bookshelves are no longer dominated by a huge set of encyclopedias. Reference books are more and more becoming an outmoded waste of money, at least for the younger generation that has grown up with computers. The kids of today are much more comfortable getting their information online instead of flipping through books.
Believe me, any high school administrator that’s being honest would love to implement something like this. But it takes much more than simply issuing netbooks to students. There is an entire hardware & software infrastructure needed to support it. LVCP is putting the infrastructure in place. LVCP will be a showcase for the efficient & effective use of technology in a public school. You can bet that Dublin HS will move to a similar model in a few years if and when it can afford to.
If Dublin HS was issuing netbooks to its students, we would all be bombarded with loud bragging and chest-beating from the district and One Dublin High School fanatics. But since Dublin HS can’t afford to do it, or figure out how to get it done, its supporters are instead attacking LVCP for doing it. How transparent and petty can they get?
An LVCP Parent
2:08 PM on August 8th, 2010
“The kids of today are much more comfortable getting their information online instead of flipping through books.”
This is not necessarily a good thing.
12:02 PM on August 11th, 2010
Ok, so computers can be used in place of text books, I think we all knew that already. You still haven’t explained why issuing them to students is necessary vs using their own computers at home (as long as you can assume they have them at home, which I think is a valid assumption in this case). Please enlighten us
12:11 PM on August 11th, 2010
I think the fact that you still have the one dublin high schoolers who complain that they don’t get how the school-issued laptops will work shows just how behind the times DHS really is.
10:07 AM on August 12th, 2010
Still waiting for reasons why this is a good idea…..
10:15 AM on August 12th, 2010
Thanks for sharing, “Paul O’Flynn”, if that’s your real name and not James. Spamming the blog with comments like this is not helping your agenda.
11:50 PM on August 6th, 2010
“LVCP will issue each incoming student a netbook computer that includes prepaid mobile broadband service and has all the class textbooks preloaded”
What a frivolous waste of money! Nothing against the charter school, I checked out there website, they seem pretty ‘on the ball,’ though I really have to question this move. With all the bickering on this thread, not single person has yet to tell me why issuing netbooks and broadband to all students makes any sense. Anyone?
12:12 PM on August 8th, 2010
There’s a good research article from 2005 on the internet that discusses issuing computing equipment to students: http://ubiqcomputing.org/Lessons_Learned_Brief.pdf
10:14 PM on July 12th, 2010
I see your point, but I actually hope the personal attacks against John Z. don’t stop. Watching the parade of crazy is part of the fun. John Z. has already proven he’s immune to those baseless attacks, unlike our fearless city leaders whose skins are so thin (yeah, I’m talking about the one in the unflattering video). Crazy commenters are everywhere. You see them on San Francisco Chronicle and New York Times all the time. In fact, I would say the ones here are tame compared to those two sites. For me, John Z. has credibility because he opens his website up to comments of all types.
Seems to me that the only way to stop the charter school is to engage John Z. If people are really dead set against a second high school in Dublin, why haven’t they reached out to John Z. and appealed to him personally? Resolve the issue and let’s move on to something more interesting…like what retails and restaurants are coming to town!
10:31 AM on July 13th, 2010
If we continue to have one high school, we will always have the mediocre high school in the valley. Lets face it: Dublin High will not be able to catch up to the performance of the high schools in Pleasanton or San Ramon
If we have 2 high schools, Dublin has a chance of having a high school rivaling its neighbors. The high school with kids from Green, Fallon, and Dougherty (east dublin schools) will likely perform better than the kids from Murray, Dublin, and Frederiksen (west dublin schools)based on the current academic performance disparity from the two groups.
The choice is:
1. Continue to have the one high school the entire valley laughs at(believe me they do)…at least they are laughing at all of us (a united Dublin).
2. Foster higher potential students by creating a high school that has a chance to become as good if not better than our neighbors.
For Option 2:
1 high school will be a track to go to community colleges and Cal States. More handholding to make sure they graduate and meet requirements, etc…
1 high school will be a track to go to UCs, Ivy League schools, etc.
Attendance to the schools will not be based on location (there are a lot of bright kids from west dublin)but based on test scores of the kids in Jr. High.
2:09 PM on July 15th, 2010
wow, two of john’s ass lickers are here – Engoerged Wu and OD’ed on OD.
2:37 PM on July 15th, 2010
Yes, and just what are you really trying to accomplish by anonymously attacking the people who like Around Dublin? Does it make DUSD look better? I suppose unseemly insults that really go nowhere is the best we can expect from DHS. Yeah, go Gaels.
3:51 PM on July 15th, 2010
It’s just as moronic to correlate idiots on this blog with the high school.
This blog used to be somewhat interesting to read, but it’s just gone WAY downhill, and it’s due to both sides of this debate. I feel dumber just having read through this stuff. I think I’m done coming here.
4:08 PM on July 15th, 2010
Why do anonymous haters always love to announce to a world that doesn’t care that they won’t be coming back to the blog? It’s pretty clear people who are affiliated with our failing high school write vicious comments that attack John Z. personally. Don’t let the door hit you on your way out, but we all know you will come back and hate on John Z. very soon, because you simply can’t help yourself. People who are as self-important as you are do that. James does it, and so will you.