Magnet Program

How unfair it is of you to compare the best of the best from the Los Angeles Unified School District to an overcrowded urban high school with a student population of 3,700. Even so, there are just as many, if not more, students in the regular high school who are as smart and bright as most of the highly gifted students. Obviously there are no Greg Marsdens among us, but then again there aren’t any Greg Marsdens anywhere else in the country.

I along with my peers am proud of the highly gifted magnet. However, the magnet isn’t the only thing that makes our school so special. It is the brilliant faculty of the entire school, who are in many cases better and more interesting than their counterparts in the highly gifted magnet, and our extremely diverse student body, 70% of whom go on to some form of higher education, that makes our school a very special place of learning.

ARMEN ADZHEMYAN

Junior, North Hollywood

Comprehensive High School

North Hollywood

* North Hollywood High School has the distinction of offering the greatest number of AP [Advanced Placement] courses in a public high school in California. Most important is that the teachers and guidance counselors encourage all who wish to participate to enroll in the AP courses offered. One does not have to be an HG magnet student to take AP courses, and a student may enroll in as many AP courses as are available in any term.

The highly gifted magnet students have an advantage that all their classes are AP-level courses. However, there are bright, motivated youngsters not in the magnet program who are encouraged by teachers and counselors to participate in the AP courses and given equal opportunity to excel. These efforts often do not receive the attention they deserve. . . . NHHS teachers are there for all students. It is also up to the students to take advantage of the courses available. A well deserved “atta boy” might go a long way in promoting the program.

SUSAN WAELDER

North Hollywood