Pacific Collegiate School - History

History

The Founding of Pacific Collegiate School

Over a period of about twenty years, beginning in the 1970’s, a group of parents and teachers in Santa Cruz, California, often met to discuss educational reform. They envisioned schools that inspire students to learn through an integrated curriculum, leading to a high level of intellectual and artistic achievement. These people were Catharine Gill, an English literature teacher, Josette Nauenberg, Meg Smith, and Christiane Young, a French teacher. California charter school legislation in 1992 made it possible for this group to conceive of implementing their ideas.

In the spring of 1998, Gill and Young, joined by Singne Coe, a history teacher, began discussing the feasibility of developing an academically strong public charter high school in Santa Cruz, CA. From the outset, Nauenberg, Smith, and Delia Krupp, a Cabrillo College art teacher, also worked on this project. Input on the math and science curriculum was given by some teachers in Santa Cruz, teachers from the private school, York, in Monterey, and a few UCSC professors.

Because of some of the founders’ experience with international schools, the new school was envisioned to be at the same level as public high schools in countries such as France and Japan. To achieve this goal, the schools’ courses were to be aligned with the expectations of the Advanced Placement program, with passing at least one AP exam a requirement for graduation. The key concepts were that students would have an international perspective particularly in their humanities courses, rigorous math and science courses, and a rich arts curriculum at each level. Upon graduation all students would be U.C. eligible. The founders believed, based on their own experience, that most students could achieve those goals with sufficient self-discipline, effective instruction with integration of subjects, and a school culture of respect for learning and accountability.

During 1998-99, Gill worked full-time planning the school, Young developed the foreign languages curriculum with input from Yadira Llort, a Spanish teacher, and Krupp developed the arts program. Smith planned and managed the budget for the school, and worked on community outreach. Nauenberg explained the founders’ vision to prospective parents and solicited support. Collectively the group developed integrated curricula for each grade level, academic and behavioral policies, a business plan which included teacher salary and benefit parity with Santa Cruz City Schools teachers, and governance policies to avoid high administrative costs. The core group applied for and received a charter school planning grant from the State, and Smith obtained a Walton Foundation grant.

A PCS Board was formed, with Reed Hastings, a charter school advocate, agreeing to be president, though he left the planning of the school to the core group. When the Santa Cruz City Schools Board twice denied the PCS charter, written by Gill with input from the core group, the Santa Cruz County Superintendent of Schools, Diane Siri, encouraged Gill to present the charter to her Board, and Smith worked with that Board’s business manager to develop ways to handle finances for the school. The PCS charter was granted by the Santa Cruz County Board of Education on 26 April, 1999.

Securing funding, managing a startup enterprise, and finding affordable space was a daunting challenge. David Hodges, an interested parent and former professor of business, joined the core group, contributing his real estate expertise and contacts in the community. He and Gill were able to negotiate a lease for use of space at the Congregational Church on High St. and at the neighboring High St. Community Church.

A principal from Los Gatos was selected after an extensive search. In the spring of 1999, for personal reasons, she withdrew her candidacy. Gayle Larson, who’d been hired to teach history, offered to be principal as she had an administrative credential. She was hired as principal for the first year only. When she left town for most of the summer, the core group took over the work of hiring teachers, handling student applications, and preparing the site. Llort travelled from San Diego to conduct an outreach and application effort with Spanish speakers in the community.

On Sept. 13, 1999, the first school year of PCS began, after a year and a half of intensive planning and community outreach. The concept for the school, however, grew from the decades of combined educational experience of the small group of founding teachers and parents.