Originally published on 16 April 2015 in the Pasadena Independent, Arcadia Weekly, Monrovia Weekly, and Sierra Madre Weekly
In September 2014, Los Angeles Magazine ranked Marshall Fundamental Secondary School eighth in the county.
This proclamation couldn’t have come at a better time for the Pasadena Unified School District which has been dogged by a not-too stellar image for decades. It was especially gratifying for Dr. Brian McDonald who, in 2011, was hired by then superintendent, John Gundry, as Chief Academic Officer. In that post McDonald led the district’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) initiative, a critical component for student success.
One of four high schools in the district, Marshall Fundamental has consistently maintained a commitment to the highest academic standards. It has the most number of AP classes (English Language and Literature; Human Geography, World History, US History, American Government & Politics; Economics; Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Statistics; Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Science; Spanish Language and Literature; Music Theory; and Studio Art) on offer and the highest API score of all the public high schools in Pasadena.
The Marshall Eagles play in girls’ and boys’ basketball, girls’ and boys’ soccer, girls’ and boys’ tennis, girls’ volleyball, baseball, cross-country, football, golf, softball, swimming, and track & field.
Some clubs on campus include the National Honors Society, Unidos, Key Club, Yearbook, Journalism, and Art Club.
Marshall Fundamental’s college counseling department partners with Naviance, a college and career readiness software provider to help their students with college planning and career assessment tools. Its software aids students with college research, course planning and personality test tools. It also helps teachers and counselors track individual student progress, and communicate with students and their families. It is integrated with the Common Application, which facilitates submitting college applications, transcripts, school forms, and teacher recommendations.
According to Catherine Charles, one of four college counselors at the school, the counseling department meets with students and their parents in 9th grade where they confer on their four-year plan. During the 9th Grade Orientation Night they discuss AP courses and testing. An AP in Human Geography, a very rigorous course, is on offer to qualified students and they need to take the AP exam upon completion.
In 10th grade, counselors assess each student based on their 9th grade transcript and go through the A – G, the requirements for acceptance to the UC system. They also talk about the PSAT, which the district pays for each 10th grader to take. Workshops are available after school to prepare them for the PSAT and CAHSEE exams one week before the tests.
The 11th grade is a busy year. School counselors meet with parents and students to review the four-year plan. They ensure students are on track to take all the AP exams required in English, US History, Science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Environmental Science), and Art Elective. They discuss the college application process, the PSAT and Merit Scholarship, and the Early Entrance Exams for College – which the UCs use to invite eligible students for guaranteed acceptance and for the different scholarships available. In the spring of junior year, workshops on the college application, the personal statement and FAFSA are held after school and on Saturdays through EAOP (for UCLA) and Upward Bound (for CalState LA and PCC).
When students reach 12th grade, they have already been to college campus visits with the school counselors. Several representatives from various colleges come on campus to invite students to apply to their schools. English teachers integrate essay writing to their curriculum using prompts on the college application to help students compose and polish their prose.
Marshall’s counselors make available to students various scholarships to which they can apply. Last year, Nubia Johnson received a four-year, full-ride scholarship to Yale through Questbridge. The class of 2014 accepted approximately $2.6M in scholarship monies, and an undisclosed amount in scholarship dollars was offered but turned down. Throughout the years, Marshall graduates have earned the Morehead-Cain (the most prestigious scholarship in the United States), POSSE, and National Merit Scholarship.
There were 234 Marshall seniors who graduated in 2014, nine of whom were valedictorians, 14 AP Scholars with Distinction, four AP Scholars with Honor, and seven National AP scholars. They later attended such elite universities as Yale, Columbia, Dartmouth, UPenn, University of Chicago, Boston University, UC Berkeley, UCLA, Northwestern, Pomona College, and Tulane.
For Dr. Mark Anderson, Marshall Fundamental’s principal, the accolades, awards and distinctions, validate the school’s commitment to providing excellent education and opportunities. As he heads towards his fifth year as head of school, he has expanded the equitable AP program that made every student who is willing to devote time and effort eligible to take an AP course.
Everyday finds Anderson visiting classrooms to see for himself how teachers engage their students in class discussions. He remembers students and addresses them by name as they spill out of their classrooms to go to the next class.
Anderson and Charles are just two of the many caring, dedicated administrators and scholars who are invested in PUSD’s future and success. And Brian McDonald is looking to them to make the district an academic powerhouse. He has an ambitious plan to rehabilitate the district’s reputation and is confident that his strategies will benefit not just Marshall Fundamental but the other three high schools as well. He proudly mentions that Pasadena High School has two National Merit Scholarship semifinalists last year.
Dr. Brian McDonald, PUSD superintendent | Photo by Terry Miller / Beacon Media News
According to McDonald, PUSD is moving away from guidance counselors to college coaches – professional staff who provide counseling services – to give students a more rounded approach to college and career preparation. He believes the coaching method gives students a far better support system in getting them ready for college and beyond.
Expanding the dual language program in the district has been a focus of McDonald’s action plans. He expanded the program from one Spanish (San Rafael Elementary) and one Mandarin Chinese (Field Elementary), to a unique pairing of STEM and Spanish Dual Language at Jackson Elementary. The first cohort of Spanish and Mandarin students are now 6th graders at Blair IB Middle School and Sierra Madre Middle School, respectively. Pasadena’s dual language schools are so highly regarded that students from as far as Rancho Cucamonga come to PUSD schools to take advantage of this program. That out-of-district parents would willingly fight the snarled traffic on the 210 freeway to drive all this way is testament to the program’s success.
A second initiative that McDonald envisions for the district is offering more innovative schemes. For one, he looks to strengthening the IB (International Baccalaureate) program that Blair High School has in place. He thinks Blair is a diamond in the rough, with much potential still to be harnessed. He also intends to provide a sufficient level of funding to help sustain the IB program at Willard Elementary, which is highly sought-after.
Proper positioning of the district in the public’s mind is the third priority. McDonald wants to launch marketing campaigns that would showcase all the accomplishments of the schools in the district. He believes that there is a great disconnect between people’s perception and reality. The district needs to trumpet awards and distinctions the various schools receive, like the Los Angeles Magazine’s selection of Marshall Fundamental as eighth in L.A. County.
Pasadenans are largely uninformed about the local schools’ many programs. He points to the implementation of the linked-learning pathways program, a career-themed system that links rigorous core courses with strong Career Technical Education (CTE) course offerings and work-based learning opportunities. Pasadena high schools have specialty subject offerings to fit varied interests – PHS offers Law and Public Service, Creative Arts, Media and Design, and the App Academy; Muir HS has Engineering and Environmental Science, Arts and Entertainment, and Business and Entrepreneurship; Blair HS has Culinary Arts and Hospitality, and Health Careers; and Marshall Fundamental offers the Academy of Creative Industries.
The ‘Principal for a Day’ program is an effective way people can experience a high school and walk away with a different perspective. McDonald also mentions PEF’s (Pasadena Educational Foundation) Realtor Tours that began in 2011 as a positive move in the right direction.
The fourth plan of action, according to McDonald, is reforming how central office operates in support of school sites. It aims to bring together all departments into one seamless process. Using the Baldridge Educational Criteria as a guide, he intends to transform the district into an organization that is effective, efficient and high-performing. In order to help employees focus on the mission of the district, a new tagline was adopted – ‘Learning Today, Leading Tomorrow’. This strategy trains teachers to be effective points of contact for students as well as parents. It will also call for parental engagement in all aspects of their children’s school life.
Establishing accountability in the school system is the fifth item on McDonald’s to do list for the district. There should be consequences and rewards for teachers, administrators, and everyone involved.
The sixth concern for McDonald is labor relations. He believes the hallmark of a good district is collaborative relationship between bargaining units and the district’s administration. PUSD needs to be more transparent in what it is able to offer teachers and administrators in terms of salary and raises.
Lastly, McDonald would like to see stability at the superintendent level. Everyone needs the assurance that the official that the board of education has put in place will uphold the duties and responsibilities that come with the office, and stay long enough to accomplish everything he has set out to do.
McDonald has five school-age children, ranging from elementary to secondary level, who currently attend Pasadena public schools. He is in this for the long haul; he is staying to make sure the district gets the recognition it rightfully deserves. And that’s not a threat, it’s a promise.
A San Gabriel Valley Inquirer 