Case Study of a California High School under Academic Sanctions

Abstract

This study is a mixed-methods case study of Antelope Valley High School (AVHS). AVHS was one of the first six schools in California to receive academic sanctions since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. It was also the first high school to receive a State Trustee who was embedded at the school every day for two school years. AVHS participated in California's Immediate Intervention for Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP), the School Assistance and Intervention Team (SAIT) Process, and sanctions that included the Trustee in the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years. This study included publicly available data, eighteen interviews, and forty survey respondents. It describes the highs and lows expressed by administration and faculty throughout the SAIT Process, Program Improvement, and sanctions. The experience of AVHS was consistent with the current research base on high-stakes accountability, reconstitution, school takeovers, school improvement, and organizational change. The discussion includes recommendations for organizations that oversee schools facing similar sanctions. (Contains 6 figures.)