New look and raising test scores at Casa Grande

There is truly a new look at Casa Grande High School this year.

With help from several Senior Projects completed last spring by students from the Class of 2016, the Big House has been cleaned up, spruced up and brightened up.

Of course, the most obvious physical change was the installation of the new synthetic turf football field and track. That project also included an impressive new entryway to the field and many other improvements.

Seven 2016 graduates designed a Vincero Plaza in honor of deceased coach James Forni that now greets students and visitors approaching the gym with a work of art instead of a patch of gooey adobe mud.

During the summer, the district converted what was essentially a weed patch behind the performing arts building into a landscaped mini-plaza with tables and small cement stages where students can practice for performances.

As their senior project, students Yin Mei Chan and Jason VanTighen added to the beauty of the area by painting a mural on a classroom wall.

In the middle of the campus, the student garden is thriving, providing not only an outdoor learning environment, but also a green oasis.

“We set a goal of making our campus a model for environmental sustainability,” said Casa Grande Principal Eric Backman.

The physical changes are being viewed by more students this year. Reversing a trend in many Sonoma County high schools, Casa Grande has more students (1,650) than its projected enrollment of 1,590.

The increased enrollment has allowed Casa to add classes and elevate some part-time teachers to full-time faculty members.

There is also good news inside the classrooms where Casa students scored well on the state CASSPP test with 74 percent of all students in the 10th and 11th grades meeting or exceeding state standards. All California schools struggled to meet or exceed standards in math, but Casa fared better than most, with 51 percent of the students meeting or exceeding standards, an 11-percent gain from the previous year.

Backman is most proud of the improvement made by Casa’s Spanish-speaking students who showed significant gains in English proficiency. “I am really proud of these students and the efforts they have made to close the academic gap,” he said.

As California schools move into the third year of teaching to the state’s Common Core Standards, Backman said Casa teachers and students are beginning to understand and buy into the new system.

“We are seeing students have more opportunities to think critically, solve problems, collaborate and work together,” he said. “There is a higher level of engagement.”

There have been some changes in vocational offerings at Casa, with four full sections of auto mechanics available and five sections of the popular culinary program, including a new hospitality and management class.

The school is working on a new concept that would develop and e-commerce business model that would allow students to sell products from the school garden and student-made products online through a student “Collective.”

“It would create a real-work learning experience It would be a real business run by the students,” Backman explained.

Casa Grande’s award-dominating student newspaper, the Gaucho Gazette, has expanded this year to include a video component that produces a weekly magazine-format video program, using techniques pioneered by students from Kenilworth Junior High School.

But, while academics are the highest priority at Casa Grande, other interests are not neglected.

The unique United Anglers of Casa Grande, located on campus, continues to provide an environmental opportunity for Casa students. The nonprofit educational organization teaches students about salmonoid fish and also provides them with hands-on experience in habitat restoration projects in area streams and creeks. United Anglers students operate and maintain a state-of-the-art conservation fish hatchery on campus.

More than half the Casa students are involved in sports and there are 40 student-led clubs, ranging from a computer coding club to a mountain bike club to a Black student Club.

It’s certainly not new, but in February, the Casa Grande Academic Decathlon team has an opportunity to add to the growing Casa academic reputation as it attempts to win its 33rd straight county championship. Last year’s team went on to finish 15th in the state.