Magnet programs growing at Clark

     By Judy DeLoretta
     View staff writer
      Two of Clark High School's three magnet programs have doubled in size for the 1999-2000 school year.
      Clark's Academy for Mathematics, Science and Applied Technology program was among the first magnet programs in all of Clark County, said school principal Wayne Tanaka.
      That was six years ago. Since then, magnet schools have popped up all over town in elementary, middle and high schools.
      Two new programs that got off the ground last year are Clark's Teacher Education Academy and the Academy of Finance. Since the inception of the programs, the class size has doubled in the number of students.
      All of Clark's magnet program students also attend regular classes. The magnet programs allow students from all over Clark County to focus on specific areas of interest.
      For magnet program acceptance, students first must apply for such programs, write essays, exhibit minimum grade-point averages that vary among the programs, and be reviewed by a panel of educators and administrators.
      "When we doubled in size, we realized the word was getting out," said Billy Corley, Clark's Academy of Finance teacher.
      Angela McBride is in her first year teaching magnet programs at Clark and will join Corley.
      "One of the reasons we've increased class size is because we're finally getting a lot of exposure," Corley said.
      The parent organization for the Academy of Finance -- the National Organization of Finance based out of New York City -- provides resources for teachers with workshops, suggestions for talking with area businesses and specific classroom training.
      The Academy of Finance also has support from its board of directors, the Southern Nevada Advisory Board, consisting of local business representatives who help to write the school's curriculum.
      With such support, Academy of Finance students also have access to paid internships in their senior year.
      This year, 64 high school students are enrolled in the Academy of Finance magnet program.
      "We really see a drive in magnet school students," Corley said. "We recruit through middle schools but they do have to come to us to apply."
      Sue Trombley, who teaches students how to become teachers in Clark's Teacher Education Academy, is a Clark County Rookie Teacher of the Year and is proud that her own daughter became a teacher.
      Trombley, who also serves as an advisor to Future Educators of America, said she is excited about the program's rapid growth.
      "The idea that so many students are actually thinking about a career in education will mean everything to our future generations," Trombley said. "I really expect to see a shortage of teachers in the next few years. Not just here, but throughout the country. This gives me a lot of hope because so many are interested in teaching."
      The magnet program will provide basic skills and ideas about careers in education to more than 100 Clark students this year.
      Sharon Weller, who has taught in the Academy for Mathematics, Science and Applied Technology magnet program at Clark for the past six years, said she's excited the program is offering Algebra I.
      Many of the magnet students who applied and were accepted to the academy weren't exposed to the class and had some trouble with the transition to geometry, calculus and trigonometry in the program.
      "For the first time at the academy, we'll have five introductory classes," Weller said. "I'm looking forward to that because it will help these students get an easier start."
      Weller's program will teach more than 100 students this year.
      "Vo-Tech was the first specialty school," Tanaka said. "Built in 1964, that school focused more on auto mechanics and other trades. The district has expanded using that as a base for specialty education."
      The first one in the series of magnet schools to follow began with the math and science academy at Clark.
      "This became part of goal for me that President Bush addressed," Tanaka said. "It was part of America 2000 to get kids to do better in math and science. We came to Nevada 2000 when (Bob) Miller was governor and then we implemented a goal of our own -- sort of a Clark 2000."