With a Degree of Difficulty

When Rita Disberry is asked why she left Westminster High School to enroll at the Orange Coast Middle College High School, the chatty 16-year-old is suddenly at a loss for words.

Instead, she just groans.

“I didn’t care about school because nobody cared about school there,” she later explained. “Not even the teachers cared about school there.”

In the time since she enrolled in the unusual program--in which high-school students study at Orange Coast College--Disberry said she is finally enjoying high school and studying diligently.

Designed for intelligent students who were falling through the cracks at regular high schools, the program has been deemed a success by many devoted students and their parents.

But the recent departure of the program’s director and declining enrollment has parents and students worried that the future of the program is in jeopardy.

“We will do whatever we can to continue this program,” said parent Karyn Sontag, “but I don’t know if there is anything we can do.”

In spite of impressive results--the grade point averages of most of the students who enroll at Newport-Mesa’s Middle College High School jump nearly a point in their first year--the district has had trouble enrolling and keeping students.

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At present, only 60 students are enrolled in a program that is designed for 150, a figure that outgoing Supt. Mac Bernd said has some district officials worried.

“We are extremely concerned about what appears to be a decline in enrollment, and we definitely want to reverse that trend,” he said.

District officials pointed out that they spend $250,000 annually to run the middle college high school. But with 60 students, they are spending much more on the middle college high school students than students at its other high schools.

Started in the fall of 1996, about 90 students enrolled in the middle college high school at the outset. This year, a similar number enrolled but many dropped out and for various reasons.

Many left because, although they were warned the college-level courses would be difficult, some students were unprepared for the level of difficulty.

Others departed when the director and founder of the middle college high school, Sandy Hoover, left the program unexpectedly two weeks ago.

Still others left because there has been no resolution to an ongoing debate about how many credits the students are supposed to get for the classes they take through OCC.

Some students feared they would get fewer credits than anticipated and would then be short some credits when it came to graduation.

Tom Jacobson, assistant superintendent in charge of secondary education, said the district is studying the issue and will make a recommendation later this academic year.

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The ones who have chosen to stay have done so out of dedication to the program.

“It’s so much better being on a college campus,” said Megan Beal, a junior, “because you can just be yourself.”

Like many of her classmates, Beal said her grades suffered partly because she didn’t like the social atmosphere at Newport Harbor High School and partly because, as one of up to 30 students in a room, she got no personal attention.

Since transferring, her grade point average jumped from a 2.5 to a 3.0 in the first year.

Likewise, Disberry said she and the other students actually benefit from doing more work that is more challenging.

“I have about one to three hours of homework a night,” she said. “I think it’s a lot harder, but I’m more motivated.”

District trustees said they were surprised when a group of parents, complaining about the changes at the middle college high school, stormed the board meeting last week. Few knew anything about the administrative problems, they said, but hope to take up the matter very soon.

Meanwhile, the parents of many students said they will do whatever it takes to make sure the middle college high school stays just where it is.

Sontag said it is because of the transformation in her son Jeffrey that she hopes the administration can guarantee the future of the middle college high school.

“For the first time, I have a son who is excited about going to college,” she said. “Finding this program has been a blessing.”

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On Course

Students at Orange Coast Middle College High School (OCMCHS) take college-level courses in addition to the high-school basics. The program is designed for students who need more challenges in the classroom. More about the program:

Selection Process

* There are no set standards.

* Each student is interviewed by school staff; staff evaluates whether student can succeed in program.

* In general, staff is looking for students who have potential to go on to college but are not achieving to the best of their ability.

Whom to Call

For more information about the program and admission, contact Newport-Mesa Unified School District office of secondary education, (714) 424-5000, or Lesley Danziger at Orange Coast College, (714) 432-0202.

Source: Orange Coast Middle College High School; Researched by HOPE HAMASHIGE/For The Times