TTUSD and Coldstream Alternative are launching a new high school program offered to the 2012 incoming 9th graders. This is a unique and exciting opportunity to offer the community more educational options within our district for those families looking for school choice in our local public school system. 

Offering a rigorous yet flexible schedule, the goal of the T.E.A.M. program is to provide small, personalized class instruction, blended with an independent study piece utilizing technology for off-site studies. The intention behind this program is to offer classes and curriculum driven by project-based and “hands on” learning activities to support the learning of core standards; to integrate themes between the core subjects which draw from the philosophy of expeditionary and environment centered learning; and to utilize technology to allow for students to work from home or while traveling. 

The T.E.A.M. program has been a process of design over the last 2 years headed by Jane Loomis, principal of Sierra High Continuation and Coldstream Alternative School. Working in alternative education for the last 20 years, she saw the need to offer more choices in our educational model. As a growing number of students in the area have been leaving the district for private schools and charter schools, she decided to set up public meetings asking for feedback regarding what the community wanted in a high school program. The ideas shared at these meetings provided the impetus to design an alternative to the traditional high school in an effort to prevent families from leaving the district. 

The school will have two on-site campuses: one in Truckee and one on the West shore at Rideout School, with a maximum class size of 20 at each site. The schedule will follow a 4 day week, with students attending classes from 8:30-12:30, Monday through Thursday. This schedule will allow students to have multiple options: either the time to take supplementary classes at Sierra College or at the traditional high schools, or participate in sports or extra-curricular activities. 

Enrollment for the T.E.A.M. program is now open; students may apply on a first-come, first-serve basis for the 12/13 school year. Contact Jane Loomis at 530-582-2640 or email her at jloomis@ttusd.org.