More than 60 students at Central High School will graduate in
June, up from 52 last year; these students have worked hard for
their diplomas, but there is no schoolwide celebration of the
event, like Live Oak High
’s Grad Night.
More than 60 students at Central High School will graduate in June, up from 52 last year; these students have worked hard for their diplomas, but there is no schoolwide celebration of the event, like Live Oak High’s Grad Night.
Central High is a continuation high school that students attend when they do not quite fit – for whatever reason – in the larger environment of Live Oak High School. Students who may otherwise have dropped out of school have a chance to finish with pride and move into adult life with that most basic of tools – the high school diploma.
“We want our students to have fun after graduation,” said Central High Home & School Club President Wendy Mann. “We want to give them a barbecue, something fun, so they can celebrate with their classmates in a safe environment. We know many families will have private celebrations; we would like them to also have an opportunity to have fun together.”
Central students can attend Live Oak’s Grad Night, but, Mann said, the cost of the tickets – if the same as last year, $65 for students, $100 for guests – is prohibitive for many of them.
Many of the students who attend Central High do so because of unique circumstances. Some of them may be contributing to the family finances by holding down a job while attending school; some may be largely supporting their family. Some of the students may have responsibilities that demand they have another option beyond what Live Oak High can offers. Some simply need a different approach to learning.
“Whatever the reason, these are not the ‘bad’ kids compared to the Live Oak ‘good’ kids,” Central High Principal Maxine Barschi said. “The students here work very hard.”
Some of Central’s students come from economically disadvantaged families, Mann said, and the families cannot support major fundraising efforts required to put on a major event.
“So we are asking the community to help us,” she said. Mann, who asked for support from other Home & School Clubs at the Morgan Hill School District Home & School Club meeting earlier this month, said she has already had some contributions from the community.
This year’s graduation ceremony, on June 12, will be held in the amphitheater at the new Community Center, Mann said.
Last year’s graduating class set a record for the school with 52 students receiving diplomas; this year, at least 60 of the 108 students will get to don a cap and gown. The number may increase before June, Mann said, because of the six-week structure of the curriculum.
Mann, who has a son who is a junior at Central, and the Home & School Club would like to provide plaques or trophies for graduates who win awards, and flowers and balloons to decorate the amphitheater for the ceremony. She said the graduation party will depend upon fundraising efforts.
“We’re waiting to see what our funds are,” she said. “We’ll get together with the kids after the fundraiser and talk about what kind of things they would like, whether it’s a barbecue, a dance, a trip to Great America … Grad Night is available to Central graduates, too, but most couldn’t even dream of doing that.”
The Home & School Club has planned a fundraiser for Saturday. They will be selling bedding plants – a full flat for $10 – at the Sno White Drive-In from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The plants are donated by Cal Color of Morgan Hill.
Mann said organizations or families or individuals may also sponsor a graduate, by donating $30 to pay for the cap and gown for a graduate. And she is trying to develop a long-term plan for fundraising so that there will be a “nest egg” for future Central High graduating classes.
“The graduating class has grown incredibly over last two years,” said Mann. “I really would like to see Maxine Bartschi recognized. Since she’s been there, things have really turned around. She hasn’t changed the requirements, obviously, but how they accomplish those goals.
