The program planning team at Eastern HS have been discussing:
- A full high school curriculum that prepares students for college and career selection. Eastern HS will be a school-of-right for neighborhoods of Ward 6.
- A Freshman Campus with staff who will support 9th graders as they adjust to high school and learn how to operate within a small learning community. The Freshman Campus will expand or contract based on the number of in-boundary 9th graders enrolled; therefore, there may be one or several small freshmen learning communities on the campus.
- Small Learning Communities designed around content or themes in the 10th, 11th, 12th grades.
The small learning community designs most discussed by the community and DCPS planners are:
o Career Academies: “schools-within-schools” organized around career themes. They integrate academic and vocational instruction, provide work-based learning opportunities for students and prepare students for postsecondary education and employment, with the personalized learning environment of a small community.
o Schools-within-school: “Schools” are organized within a larger high school around a theme, such as the Freshman Campus or a “Green Campus,” in which students work closely with a core group of teachers and other adults.
