Background:

In October 2015, staff from both Novato Unified School District and College of Marin attended a conference which provided any overview of a course called “Get Focused….Stay Focused!”  After the conference, staff presented a comprehensive overview of course and its benefits to the school board.  As a review, the Get Focused…Stay Focused (GFSF)! is an initiative designed to provide every student with the necessary information and experiences to develop college and career readiness skills as well as facilitate the development of an online 10-year Career and Education Plan.

The transition to the GFSF course is well-timed for Novato Unified School District in that the graduation requirements for the freshman year need to be updated to better serve the needs of our current students. The GFSF course will replace Geography as a requirement for incoming freshmen. However, both high schools will continue to offer Geography as an elective as well as the Advanced Placement course, AP Human Geography. Further, World History and United States History will continue to provide high school students with a strong background in geography within the historical context. This also aligns with the new History-Social Framework recently released by the California Department of Education.
The Get Focused…Stay Focused! Course also will provide several benefits to our students and have a positive impact school-wide. First, the GFSF course outline has already been approved by the UC and CSU’s as a college preparatory course in the “g” category (elective). Additionally, an articulation agreement with College of Marin means that all freshmen in NUSD will be enrolled at COM and the majority of students will receive college credit (grade dependent). Finally, students will develop a comprehensive 10-year plan that has proven to motivate students

In addition, the data for school districts have successfully implemented the course has seen:

  • 9th grade course failure rate decreased
  • Freshman suspension rates decreased
  • Overall school attendance increased
  • Improved Advanced Placement performance
  • Higher ACT and SAT scores
  • Increased graduation rates

All of the benefits of the course align well with district goals and priorities to increase the percentage of students meeting college entrance requirements (A-G rates) and increasing the number of students taking higher level college preparatory courses.

Finally, Novato Unified is fortunate to have an extremely strong partnership with the College of Marin, which allows for an articulation agreement between each entity. This means that any certificated teacher can teach the course and be articulated with an equivalent course at College of Marin. The Memorandum of Understanding between COM and NUSD outlines the responsibilities of each party as well as the grading criteria to articulate the course to the College of Marin.  The course outline was reviewed and refined by College of Marin staff to articulate to their course Counseling 129, College and Career Readiness. College of Marin staff will also submit the course to be approved for University of California and California State University transferable credit, which means that students who receive an A or B in the course (based on successful completion of the exit portfolio requirement) will receive college credit.  Further, the course culminates in students creating an online 10-year career and education plan,

Overview (From 2015 Board Report)

Get Focused…Stay Focused! Is an initiative designed to provide every student with the necessary information and experiences to develop college and career readiness skills as well as facilitate the development of an online 10-year Career and Education Plan.

The course outline was reviewed and refined by College of Marin staff to articulate to their course Counseling 129.  College of Marin staff will also submit the course to be approved for University of California and California State University transferable credit, which means that students who receive an A or B in the course (based on successful completion of the exit portfolio requirement) will receive college credit. Further, the course culminates in students creating an online 10-year career and education plan,

The Get Focused…Stay Focused! Initiative positively impacts the lives of all students by:

  • Provides developmental and self-sufficiency topics for at-risk students who may lack these skills
  • For students on track to college, currently only 53% of the entering college freshman nationwide graduation within six years, pointing to the need for early interventions to provide students with a vision of a productive future and an understanding of the consequences of not completing their college education
  • For the highest functioning students, learning the process for personalized career decision-making will provide a skill and understanding that will propel them to make the best choices for themselves. When individuals’ career choices match their unique personalities, life satisfaction increases

Get Focused…Stay Focused! Curriculum utilizes the Career Choices and Changes workbook, allowing students to discover who they are, what they want, and how to get it.  The course is broken down into three sections:

  • Section One: Who Am I?
  • Section Two: What Do I Want?
  • Section Three: How Do I Get It?

 

For more information, visit the Get Focused Stay Focused! website: http://getfocusedstayfocused.org/parents_corner.php