Ventura Unified School District Offers Alternatives in Education

Breaking New Ground in Alternative Education

El Camino High School Campus Opening at Ventura College; Homestead Moving to Blanche Reynolds

The Ventura Unified School District has been working for years to give parents innovative choices in education with El Camino High School, Open Classroom K-8 at Blanche Reynolds Elementary and the home schooling program, Homestead School. More exciting options will be available next fall when El Camino moves its entire operation to the Ventura College campus and Homestead moves to Blanche Reynolds.

Click to visit El Camino High School online

El Camino High School is currently in the process of building a new campus on the Ventura College grounds. Once completed, El Camino students will have unprecedented access to everything the college has to offer — state-of-the-art technology, a beautiful library, up-to-date science labs, art studios and numerous support services. The move is expected to take place in the fall of 2007.

Unique among California high schools, El Camino also offers:

• Fully accredited, college-prep classes;
• Independent study delivery format in a small-school setting;
• The ability to earn high school and college credit concurrently
• No tuition fees for college classes;
• A flexible setting which allows students to pursue work,
internships, community service, athletics and the arts;
• A one-on-one educational experience with a fully
credentialed teacher; and
• Free enrollment open to students who live in Ventura, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara counties.

Another alternative education gem, Ventura’s Homestead School is geared to home schooling K-8 families. Experiential learning is stressed at Homestead, with students able to explore their own areas of interest. Students are matched up with a fully credentialed teacher who meets with the family on a regular basis to support individual learning goals.

Homestead also offers:

• Free access to all texts, alternative curriculum and other educational resources;
• Interaction with other students through classes, field trips, assemblies and other activities;
• Individualized lesson plans;
• Evaluation of each child’s progress; and
• Free enrollment open to students who live in Ventura, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara counties.

Homestead will be relocating to the same site as  Ventura Unified’s long-standing K-8 alternative education program, the Open Classroom at Blanche Reynolds. A place where students reach their full potential in a supportive, family atmosphere, Open Classroom has been in operation for 31 years. Emphasis is on teaching to the “whole child” and developing a life-long love for learning.

Open Classroom also features:
• Individualized and small-group instruction;
• Innovative teaching methods with a balance of creativity and structure;
• Responsiveness to individual learning styles;
• Parent participation in the classroom;
• Emphasis on social responsibility, environmental awareness and
community service;
• The unique Rainbow Bridge playground on campus; and
• Free enrollment open to any child in the Ventura Unified School District.

For more information on El Camino High School, call (805) 289-7955 or visit www.ventura.k12.ca.us/vusd/elcamino. For more information on Homestead School, call (805) 289-7900, ext. 1109 or visit www.ventura.k12.ca.us/vusd/homestead.htm. For more information about Open Classroom, call 289-1817, ext. 1220 or visit
www.theopenclassroom.org.■

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