STHS to open individual classes to WHS kids

Classes in the Tahoe Arts and Design sector at STHS are expected to be popular with WHS students. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

Starting this fall students at Whittell High School should be able to take individual classes at South Tahoe High School.

The school boards of the respective districts are slated to vote on the agreement at their March 8 meetings.

While inter-district transfers between the Nevada and California districts have been available for a price for years, the ability to take select classes would be new.

The impetus to offer this to WHS students came from the group that was assembled more than a year ago to deal with parental dissatisfaction with how things were going at the Stateline school. One of the issues was lack of electives. With Whittell being such a small school, only so many classes are available.

“We are targeting juniors and seniors looking to build their academic resumes,” Teri White, superintendent of Douglas County School District, told Lake Tahoe News. “In order for it to work out we have to free the student up for almost two periods because of driving there and back.”

This means the student needs flexibility in their day to make it work, and also why they may only want to take one class at STHS.

Students will be required to provide their own transportation.

The Douglas school board this year approved the calendar for next fall, which now aligns with Lake Tahoe Unified School District. This will help with students who want to take classes in both states.

Whittell students will only be admitted to a STHS class if there is room, so there is no threat to a STHS student being displaced.

WHS students have Fridays off, so depending on which South Tahoe class they take, it may mean going to school five days a week.

While LTUSD will make money off of the students, Superintendent Jim Tarwater said the reason to do this “is to take care of kids.”

“I want those kids to compete in whatever college they want to go to,” Tarwater told Lake Tahoe News.

It will cost $3.63 a day, or a little more than $300 per class. For students on the Nevada side who go to STHS full time it costs $5,224.

Neither superintendent would venture a guess as to how many students might take advantage of this opportunity that will take effect in the 2016-17 school year – assuming the two boards approve it – but guessed it wouldn’t be that many.