Workforce 2000 Charter School

WHAT IS Workforce Academy?

The Kern Workforce Academy is a charter school within the Kern High School District. At the heart of Workforce is the belief that all students can be successful with appropriate and intentional support. It serves students who have otherwise had limited success in school. Many who are out of school by previous choice and circumstance can now complete their education and acquire the necessary skills for the competitive world in which we live.

Students who may benefit from this school include:

• Out of school single high school parents
• Dropouts, particularly those who have dropped out of school to assist in supporting their family
• Students who benefit from attending school in the evening.
• Students who want to earn a high school diploma

Mission

The mission of Workforce is to recover, retain, serve, and graduate high-risk, out-of-school, or credit-deficient high school-age youth. The Academy aims to serve these youth, who, with increased parental engagement and academic and social-emotional remediation, will seize opportunities that will prepare them for a learning-centered, technologically literate future. In so doing, students will be better equipped to return to their comprehensive school site or graduate with a high school diploma from the Academy and pursue post-secondary training, education, and career goals

Vision

Our vision is that all students deserve an engaging and relevant learning environment designed by skilled educators and supported by an involved school and local community.

WORKFORCE ACADEMY UNDERSTANDS

Many circumstances make it difficult or impossible for these students to continue their education in a traditional sense. The state education code virtually forces schools to exclude those students who can not attend full-time.

Traditional schools typically require a minimum of 240 minutes/day of student attendance. Independent study, in which students do a full week’s worth of work at home, and come in for an hour each week to review with an instructor, demands a level of study skills and self-discipline that many young people do not yet possess.

Our program follows the current adult school model, a model with broad acceptance in the community. Each class is a minimum of 180 minutes, requiring students to enroll in two classes for a total of 360 minutes per day, four days per week. Each student’s transcript is reviewed, and counselors create schedules based on need. 

In addition to recovering credits, we also want our students to leave us having learned a skill or earned a certificate in any of our CTE classes. Depending on the site, we offer construction, food-handlers, welding, robotics, photography, graphic arts and many others. These offerings continue to expand.