|
JMCS began its partnership with the Monterey Bay Operations site of the CCC in 1999. Jay
Morse has been a teacher at the site since the beginning. He has enjoyed the freedom to create his own program and work closely
with individual students to help them realize their educational goals.
A strong
emphasis is put on individualized instruction using a tutorial method which has
recently been enhanced by the incorporation of the on-line PLATO learning
system. Jay helps the student to identify goals and academic weaknesses and
together they decide on a program that best fits the student.
An additional
emphasis at this site is building "Conservation Awareness" for each
student through special classes and field trips. Most recently, students visited
the Pacific Grove Natural History Museum on a paid education/training day.
Another recent event was the visit to one of our projects by Clint Eastwood and
Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton to help our corpsmembers as they taught
elementary school children how to plant native plants in a coastal lagoon that
they were rehabilitating. The students often receive high school credit for
this type of project or event.
The CCC staff at Pinto Lake, which is a small site housed in a beautiful old
historic house in Pinto Lake Park
just outside Watsonville,
are extremely supportive of the school and dedicated to the educational as well
as the vocational progress of each corpsmember. The JMCS students are required
to spend 7 to 10 hours per week on education in class or on-line with Plato/Skills Tutor.
All of our students are non-residential and most come from either Watsonville or Salinas,
where a satellite crew is based. Fridays are a special day here, when JMCS
students come to study individually as well as participate in group instruction
in a relaxed and stimulating atmosphere.
Since 1999, 41 students have earned their high school diploma while working with the
CCC here and attending John
Muir Charter
School at the same time.
|
