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The Public Policy Program at César Chávez Public Charter High School for Public Policy is a four-year curriculum designed to expose students to public policy issues and the roles of citizens in shaping public policy. The program has four components, each culminating in a Public Policy Capstone for three weeks out of every year. The components include:
Reasons for Practice
Principal and founder of the Chávez School, Irasema Salcido, created a high school for public policy because she recognized that the youth of Washington, DC bear the burden of many of the social ills that plague the city. She felt that urban youth deserved a college-preparatory education that focused on teaching them how to affect social change and the public policies that impact their communities. The Chávez School was founded in 1998 with the vision of developing young people who will make the world a better place by influencing the public policies that shape their communities. To support this mission, the Chávez School has implemented a four-year public policy curriculum. Length of Time in Effect The Public Policy Program has been in operation since the founding of the school in September 1998.
The Public Policy Curriculum THE PUBLIC POLICY program, César Chávez Public Charter High School for Public Policy (Chávez) is one of the school's distinguishing features. It is the only program of its kind in the nation's capital that offers students the unique opportunity to affect both local and national policy. The Public Policy Program exposes students to public policy issues, leaders, social movements, organizations, and the roles of citizens in shaping public policy, while developing the students' research, critical thinking, writing, and public speaking skills. Each grade has a public policy component and students spend three weeks out of the year on Public Policy Capstones. Public Policy Capstone Units During the last three weeks of the academic year, students, faculty and community leaders work collaboratively on intense, interdisciplinary projects focused on public policy. Examples of Capstone accomplishments include:
Ninth Grade
Tenth Grade
Community Action Project The focal point of the tenth grade public policy curriculum is the Community Action Project. The goal of the project is to catapult the traditional community service requirement into a project that teaches students the tools and skills to influence the policies that affect their communities. One group of students, for example, worked with the Sierra Club on the issue of transportation. They met with the DC Metro Board to advocate for improved bus service in low-income areas. Another group of students worked with the Alliance for Justice on the issue of gun violence. They organized a rally against gun violence in Dupont Circle. A group of students working with Common Cause met with members of Congress on the issue of campaign finance reform. The specific skills focused on in the tenth grade are:
To gain further understanding of a specific policy issue and to apply their public policy skills, juniors complete a full-time, three-week, intensive academic fellowship at a public policy organization. At the placements, students work on a specific public policy project, honing their research skills. In addition to gaining more exposure to the field of public policy, students gain professional skills through workshops on résumé writing, interviewing, presentation software, dressing for success, and phone etiquette. Student fellows have worked in organizations including: the White House's
Office of the Vice President; Leadership Committee on Civil Rights;
Choice USA; Sierra Club; DC Action for Children; Washington Peace Center;
United Students Against Sweatshop Labor; DC Agenda; Sexuality Information
and Education Council of the United States; The Senate Democratic Policy
Committee; The World Bank; The Heritage Foundation; Urban Institute;
and the National Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco. At least 10
students have been hired on for summer positions after completing their
fellowship. The specific skills focused on in the eleventh grade are:
The specific skills focused on in the Eleventh grade
are:
Twelfth Grade
César Chávez Public Charter High School for Public Policy:
Susan Flora Telephone: 202-387-6980
The following student work sample has been provided courtesy of César Chávez Public Charter High School for Public Policy. Student Work Sample This is an example of one of the Senior Research papers. In the process of writing this paper, senior Francesca (Chessie) Moquete met with and interviewed several professionals in the field of education reform and charter school evaluation.
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