New Hope high school

New Hope high school

Written by Mark Collins Monday, 24 March 2008

New Hope High School offers an alternative education for students in the Leander Independent School District and has been helping students graduate since 2002.

“Our focus is students who are at risk of not graduating from high school. We are an academic alternative high school of choice serving LISD,” NHHS Principal Bud Seifert said. “We present the same curriculum that any of the traditional high schools would; we just present it in a different way.”

New Hope offers all of the core academic courses as well as about 20 electives. Students are given a variety of ways to complete courses, including computer-based coursework, textbooks and individual tutoring.

The computer-based learning program was purchased last year and is web-based, meaning students can view lectures and complete assignments anywhere they can access the internet.

“We are alternative in the sense that students work independently. Students work at their own pace,” Seifert said. “Students interact with the curriculum on their own with teachers serving as mentors, guides, supporters, tutors, but not directly lecturing.”

New Hope has four teachers, all of whom have multiple certifications so that more areas of study can be taught.

Each student works with a teacher as an adviser to create a personal graduation plan and course needs list. The adviser helps the student keep track of the graduation plan to make sure he is staying on track.

The school is open from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., and students are required to attend at least five hours each day, but are welcome to come early or stay late. Students are not assigned homework, but are expected to complete a certain amount of work, whether it be at home or at the school.

All students in LISD are welcome to apply to attend New Hope. The process begins in the counselor’s office with a one-page application and 250-word essay on why the student would like to attend the alternative school. Seifert then brings the student in for a 30-minute interview to get to know the individual.

Students are then placed on a fluctuating waiting list, meaning they are ranked on the list according to need. Students closer to graduation or with other at-risk factors are given preference.

The school, with a capacity of 60 students, is usually filled. It has averaged 45 graduates per year for the past three years and is on pace to meet the mark again in 2008. Almost 50 percent of students graduate with an LISD passport (a vocation-focused area of study), 37 percent were on the state’s recommended graduation plan and 25 percent of students have gone on to higher education.

“Everything we do is focused on the student learning,” Seifert said. “We think that because of the way we work, we more easily than the other schools can focus on each individual student.”

The New Hope High School coat of arms was designed in 2007 by a New Hope student as a senior project. The bridge to success is a model that the school was given when the school opened in 2002. The book represents knowledge. The sun rising stands for a new beginning and the graduation cap is the goal of all students. The clause at the center is Latin for, “If I can’t find a way, I’ll make a way.” The coat of arms is displayed prominently at the entrance to New Hope High School.

New Hope High School, 401 S. West Street, 435-4911 • http://nhhs.leanderisd.org