On the week of March 4, 2024, Western Association of School and Colleges (WASC) visited and evaluated Ridgeview High School during school time for the official public school accreditation.
Roger Sanchez, the Principal of Ridgeview High School informs that the last WASC evaluation was in 2018 and was made aware they would come back six years later. In order to prepare teachers for these visitations, Sanchez shares how he incorporated training into teachers schedules . He shares, “For the last two years the teachers have been dedicating certain days (Monday early outs) for department meetings and meeting with members of their specific courses in their subject area. Several of those meetings were dedicated to the WASC process.” Sanchez continues, clarifying how the evaluation process works while they are here at the school. He says, “The WASC process is a self-study. We write the report, and the visiting committee reviews our report and confirms that what we say we are doing, we are actually doing. They spend the time during the evaluation, visiting classrooms, speaking with teachers, meeting with students, classified staff, and parents.” Coming out of the tedious evaluation process, Sanchez explains the hope and expectations when given back the evaluation results. He shares, “We take the WASC evaluation very seriously because they can impact the school’s accreditation status, which in turn affects its reputation and ability to certify the diploma we issue. Feedback and results from WASC evaluations provide valuable insights into our school’s strengths and areas for improvement. We will use this feedback to make strategic decisions about curriculum, policies, and resources to enhance the quality of education for our students.” Closing his thoughts, Sanchez shows appreciation for the teachers and the work they put in for the process. He expresses, “Our staff, students, & parents did a great job in preparing for the visit and we feel confident that we will receive a favorable review from the committee.”
Lyah Navarro, a current 9th grader at Ridgeview, was unaware of the visitation. She claims she had no idea they were coming and, “didn’t know what was happening when I saw a bunch of men in suits walking around the campus all day”. Navarro says she heard from fellow classmates about them being in their classes to watch their teachers and how it made them feel. She explains, “I almost feel like it distracted a lot of classmates because they couldn’t help, but be nervous about these people in suits watching them trying to learn and do their work”. Navarro also shows interest in what aspects the workers evaluate. She continues, “When I found out exactly what those people were here for, I was curious to know what they think of certain teachers or if any student behaviors affect the teachers evaluation; which I sure hope not because some of these kids could not behave if their life depended on it.” While Navarro did find student involvement interesting, she clearly states her relief of not being interviewed by the workers. She claims, “I am glad they didn’t pick me for any student interview or anything like that because I wouldn’t know what to say or would feel too pressured with my answers.”.
Lucy Sandoval, a parent of a student at Ridgeview, claims she also did not know about the visitation until her daughter had told her. She reveals, “I just remember being surprised when my daughter told me about it, it almost seemed like the school wasn’t making it as big of a deal as I thought it would be”. Sandoval states her hopes for the evaluation results. She expands on it, “While I was quite nervous for the teachers and staff, I hope the school takes the criticism and results very seriously to help build a better learning environment for all the kids because at the end of the day, it’s the students that matter. In the end, Sandoval hopes the overall feedback and results of the evaluation was good and, “I’m proud of the staff members and teachers who prepared for all this and hope they were recognized for being good educational workers”.
