DISTRICT MAY GIVE AVID A TRY\Las Virgenes considers course for C students.

Byline: R.A. Hutchinson Daily News Staff Writer

Curriculum planners for the Las Virgenes Unified School District want to introduce a pilot program next year to help hard-working C students obtain credits needed to attend college.

Madge Lamb, director of curriculum and instruction, said the Advancement Via Individual Determination program would be offered next fall on a trial basis at Agoura and Calabasas high schools. The course would be an elective open to qualifying students.

"There is a goal out there and that goal is admittance to college," Lamb said.

Under a proposal discussed this week by the district's Curriculum Council, the AVID class would be taught for a year and then reviewed to determine whether it would become a permanent curriculum offering.

In general, the class would focus on using writing skills and tutoring groups to help the student achieve a B average in college prep courses.

Some parents and teachers expressed concern that AVID would be offered at the expense of existing programs and that implementing the class by fall would be moving too quickly.

"I'm not against AVID. I'm sure it is probably a fine program," said Kris Lundquist, a business education teacher at Agoura High School. "My concern is that it will have an impact and that there hasn't been adequate time to look at that impact."

She said she would like to see the district make the process for introducing a pilot program more strenuous for all projects, not just for AVID.

Doug Maletz, a parent who sits on the Curriculum Council, also wanted to know about the selection process for the AVID class. His daughter, who has a learning disability, is taking several college-level classes and could possibly use the tutoring offered through AVID.

However, the general guidelines for the class specify that participants must have C grade point averages, a requirement that Maletz said would disqualify his daughter because she works hard to maintain a B-plus average.

"I think she could benefit from some of the tutoring AVID offers," he said.

Leo Lowe, assistant superintendent of instructional services, suggested such issues should be addressed during the course of the pilot program.

Students for the initial class will be selected by the two teachers trained in the AVID program - Steve Rubin, an English teacher at Agoura High School, and Robin Anders, an English teacher at Calabasas High School.

"We're looking for students with the potential to bring up their grades to a B. It's not really for students with discipline or attendance problems," Rubin said.

Rubin said the basic premise of AVID is a student's willingness to make at least a two-year commitment to the program. During the interview process, interested students are asked to sign a contract to uphold their responsibility for completing the class.

Under the current plan, Rubin said eighth-grade students at the two middle schools would be approached about entering the program next fall as freshmen.

Lamb said AVID was developed 10 years ago in San Diego County. The school districts in Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks already have the AVID program in place.

Fred Van Leuven, director of secondary education for the Conejo district, said AVID was implemented two years ago. The district offers one section at Sequoia Intermediate School and two at Thousand Oaks High School.

"We've found, in general, that the kids' GPAs have gone up at both the intermediate school and the high school. In general, they have also done better on standardized test scores," Van Leuven said.

Van Leuven said the district is compiling statistical information about the success rate of AVID, with the report expected at the Jan. 25 meeting of the Conejo district.

The only disadvantage Van Leuven has noted in the program has been the fact that demand by students who want to take the class is higher than the district is able to meet at this time.