The Branciforte Small Schools Campus
A Coalition for Essential Schools Affiliate
The Branciforte Small Schools Campus (BSSC) has been located on the old Branciforte Elementary School site (built in 1914) since the fall of 2004, and houses four schools in the Santa Cruz City School District — Alternative Family Education (AFE) Homeschool, Ark Independent Studies, Costanoa High School (created from the merger of Loma Prieta High School and the Ark daily program), and Monarch Community Elementary School. Additionally, Branciforte Head Start is located on campus.
BSSC is a Coalition of Essential Schools campus. The Coalition of Essential Schools (CES) is at the forefront of creating and sustaining personalized, equitable, and intellectually challenging schools. Essential schools are places of powerful learning where all students have the chance to reach their fullest potential. Graduates understand and exhibit the habits that foster a lifetime of success.
Ark Independent Studies and Costanoa are accredited by WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) Accrediting Commission for Schools.
- Below are the tentative yearly schedules for the Santa Cruz City Schools (2011–2012):
- Elementary Calendar (PDF)
- Secondary Calendar (PDF)
AFE is a home school program for 165 kindergarten through twelfth grade students and their families who prefer an individualized, home/community-based approach to education combined with the support of school district resources. In addition to regular meetings with Consultant Teachers who help outline educational goals and objectives, students may participate in weekly enrichment classes, league sports, theater productions, and field trips, including the annual trip to the Shakespeare Festival in Oregon. Visit AFE's website
Ark Independent Studies is a fully accredited alternative high school with 90 students. Ark students are self-disciplined and motivated students in grades 9–12 who are working toward a high school diploma. Students participate twice monthly in a seminar class, an advisory group, and individual meetings with the assigned teacher. During individual meetings students are given specific assignments, and course work is corrected and evaluated. Assignments are tailored to fit the individual student's interests and learning style. Students are expected to spend a minimum of 20 hours each week completing their assignments at home, in addition to attending the seminar and advisory. The seminar and advisory support the students' independent work with instruction, tutoring, and academic and career counseling. Visit Ark's website
Costanoa students benefit from small class sizes and strong relationships with staff members. We focus on developing the following habits: "Use your mind well. Do the right thing. Work hard." Costanoa has a diverse student population that includes 140 students in grades 10–12. Curricular offerings include English Language Development and special interest courses like garden science, careers, digital photography, ceramics, yoga, and weight training. Costanoa is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Visit Costanoa's website
Monarch is a kindergarten through 6th grade elementary school. The families of the 90 students are required to participate in school-related activities, in and outside of the classroom, thus providing opportunities for the staff and families to work together to implement a shared educational philosophy. Students learn in a multi-age, caring, hands-on, and developmentally appropriate environment with a theme-based curriculum that is connected to students' lives and builds upon prior knowledge and experiences. Visit Monarch's website
The mission of the Branciforte Small Schools is to create and sustain alternatives to traditional public school models where childhood and adolescence are celebrated, children and youth feel connected and respected, and each individual works toward his or her personal best academically, emotionally, socially, artistically, and culturally.
We work together to develop a rich learning environment spanning home, school, and the greater community. We create a safe, caring, developmentally appropriate learning experience in which students are constructing their own knowledge connected to their real lives and building upon their prior experiences. We provide hands-on, relevant experiences. We value and promote multi-age and cross-cultural groupings. Students are engaged in purposeful learning in which they have ownership and responsibility, a balance of choice and direction, experience and practice.
Download the BSSC Professional Development Plan (PDF)
The Native American occupants of this land would have been members of the Uypi tribal group (part of the Awaswas language group), part of the larger group known as Costanoans. The Uypi group held the mouth of the San Lorenzo River, and with Branciforte Creek running up from that river, this would undoubtedly have been land that they gathered acorns and other plant food from and hunted on. The creek would have provided many resources for these people. Try to imagine it, with thick salmon runs, bears (hungry for salmon as well), oaks, thick blackberry bushes, paths along the creek, all native vegetation.
In 1797 Villa de Branciforte was established on what is now our property. Villa de Branciforte was one of the three original secular settlements in what is now California (the others were the pueblos of Los Angeles and San Jose). The Villa de Branciforte was a hybrid community populated by soldier-settlers and established to colonize and defend Alta California against Russia, England, and France. In 1802, five years after it was founded, the Villa de Branciforte settlers attempted to establish a civil government by electing an alcalde (or mayor), an election that was perhaps the first to be held in Alta California.
The current school building, designed by William Weeks, opened in 1914 and replaced the original Branciforte School that had been located at 555 Soquel Avenue.
With the establishment of the Santa Cruz Mission and the Villa de Branciforte the Costanoans were run completely out of the Monterey Bay area. In October of 2004 descendants of the original inhabitants, the Costanoan Rumsen Carmel Tribe, came to our campus, blessed the land, and gave the school permission to use the land.
Dale Knight — Principal - x214
Jenny Russell — Assistant Principal - x204
Tami Imai — Secretary - x214
Debbie Gable — Library Media Specialist - x217
Maria Luna — Health Clerk & Attendance - x200
Lisa Orozco — Registrar - x201