Photo image of Charter School Info

Questions Solutions
Photo: image of tour of Valley Oak Campus home of Da Vinci in Fall 2009
Photo: image of tour of Valley Oak Campus future home of Da Vinci High in Fall 2009

Photo: image of Valley Oak campus field and outdoor activity

Photo: image from tour of new Da Vinci campus at Valley Oak campus

Photo: image of students touring new campus for Da Vinci the Valley Oak campus
Will DVHS have a sustainable technology budget to provide working laptops and support service to students? Yes. DVHS will have an annual budget of $140,000 for technology and one full time technology staff person.

Will my diploma be affected?

 Students will still receive a diploma from an accredited public high school.
Will co-enrollment at DSHS continue? A more flexible DV schedule will allow students the possibility to co-enrol at DSHS or SCC. This schedule would most likely have DVHS open longer hours and a student could attend earlier and leave earlier or start later and end later to accommodate for travel.
How long does it take to get to Valley Oak from DSHS? Students who travel by bicycle or car can expect an  8-10 minute commute
How willing would DSHS be to accommodate our schedule requests? Davis High School schedules courses based on student demand, teacher availability and the ability to reduce conflicts between course offerings. As a result, Davis High School will be more willing to accommodate DV student requests for courses with substantial numbers. However, we are also very aware that we, DVHS staff, will continue to be flexible and innovative in dealing with the scheduling concerns as they arise.
For students in music/AP/sports, how would it work? Students could still co-enrol at DSHS, however the likelihood of students getting more than one class at DSHS would decrease from the present. Students will always be able to compete in Davis Senior High Athletics and we would offer competitive, rigorous and relevant courses in science and language. Music courses at Da Vinci could be developed based on student demand.
What’s the potential for connecting with SCC? We already have a substantial connection with Sacramento City College. We offer four courses on our campus at present (Philosophy, Sociology, Animation 1 & 2). With additional space and a more flexible schedule we would have the capacity to increase offerings through SCC.
What would foreign language options be? Most likely we would offer a PBL style Spanish 1-5 at DVHS. However, if there was student demand for a different language we may be able to accommodate.
How would kids go back and forth? Students could travel by car, bicycle or bus. We would have a schedule that enabled students to travel to Davis Senior High if necessary. Depending on the number of students requiring transportation at specific times we may create specialized options to meet student need.
Where would people park at Valley Oak? We would have access to the V.O. parking lots and the Dollar Tree parking lot at the end of the block.
If we move, will it affect getting into college? College admissions will not be affected by relocation. Students will still be attending an accredited High School, which provides college prep courses in a rigorous and relevant fashion, just as it does today.
Will there be more classes at DVHS if we move? Yes. Most of the students who currently take classes at DSHS would take a similar course at DV. As a result we would have more course offerings, which would include science & language offerings and additional electives.
Would Da Vinci take Freshmen? Yes. However, the board approved a 7-9th grade component, which will be housed at Emerson Junior High School. We are still working on the details of whether the 9th grade component will open in the fall of 2009 or 2010
What about advanced studies in science? Da Vinci staff is currently exploring advanced course options that could be offered at the Valley Oak campus. As a result students would be able to choose to request an advanced course at DVHS, DSHS or SCC.
How do you cope with the transition? We cope with the transitions associated with relocation with a collaborative ‘can do spirit.’ Students, parents and staff will need to connect and collaborate to solve the problems that arise and to continue to create and maintain a very positive community.
Will a move to a new site will be “required of current students”? No. Students will always have the choice to attend the school of their choice in Davis, however, we hope students would decide to remain with us.
Will we have secure lockers? At present there are no lockers at Valley Oak, but we have begun to explore storage options from in class storage to a secure locker cage.
Will an increase in student numbers change the student focus on newcomers/experience? Our mission is to never grow above 400 students. All of the current research demonstrates that a school looses the benefits associated with smallness at 400. However students, with staff assistance, will always need to create the means by which new students connect and become part of a larger community.
How will a new site promote cross age connections and community? With a new facility and flexible schedule we would have the opportunity and capability to bring students together in a multitude of ways, which would promote the cross age connections students value.