From March 1-4, the Western Association of Schools and Colleges will be visiting and assessing TCHS. The seven people on the visiting committee will be walking around the school, observing classes and talking with students and teachers.
WASC is ensuring that our school is effectively and efficiently teaching. They will return in one to six years, depending on their findings.
“I think we’re a great school with a great staff and very talented students,” Principal Mary Jo Fosselman-King said. “I’m excited for them to come and see what we’re doing.”
When they arrive on Sunday, ASBL will greet the visiting committee and give them a tour of the campus. The committee will familiarize themselves with the staff and set up their work for the next day in Rm. P1.
On Monday, they will be visiting classes to observe how the teachers and students interact, examining student work and meeting with groups of teachers. They will meet with the Student Committee, who organized the student survey.
WASC will continue to visit classrooms and meet with teachers on Tuesday. They will also pull random students aside at break to form the Ad Hoc Student Group and ask them a few questions during lunch.
On Wednesday after school, they will present their assessment of TCHS’s strengths and weaknesses in the Media Center with staff members and any students who would like to attend.
In preparation for the WASC visit, teachers compiled a 150-page report on improvements, accomplishments and new ideas for the school. This includes recognitions such as marching in the Rose Parade and areas of improvement in the RAMS program. Math Teachers Ms. Nancy Bulgin and Ms. Sherry Marrier sent the report to the committee in January.
“Ms. Bulgin and I met with the TC staff over the past year to get information about all the great programs at our school,” Ms. Marrier said. “We put this information into a report that’s about 150 pages. It’s really a brag book about how amazing you all are!”
In anticipation of WASC, fourth period teachers will talk about the upcoming visit with their students. Many staff members have also spruced up their work areas so they are more presentable.