Health Services Academy (HSA) High School is a free public charter school developed and operated by Alliance College-Ready Public Schools and authorized by the Los Angeles Unified School District. Opened in August 2009, HSA employs the theme of health care to provide students with rigorous college-preparatory instruction and application-based curriculum. The school’s mission is to equip students in South Los Angeles with the tools necessary to excel in high school, to prepare them to enter and succeed in college, and to motivate them to select health care related majors and careers – areas where minority students like those in the school community are grossly underrepresented.
Characteristics: As part of the small high-performance model shared by all Alliance schools, HSA is committed to the following core values: high expectations for all students, small and personalized school and classrooms, increased instructional time, highly qualified principals and teachers, and parents as partners.
In order to successfully transition students into health care related college majors and careers, a key component of the HSA model includes a dynamic Work-Based Learning Program that provides opportunities for students to advance knowledge and skills through practical experience, research and service. The program follows a progressive path from 9th through 12th grade and includes: laboratory and medical science classes; medical training and certification in first aid, CPR and HIPAA; job skills training; service learning projects; health related field trips; guest speakers from health service professions; mentorships provided by local college, university and medical students; job-shadowing; and on-site internships with universities and non-profit/for-profit health service organizations.
Partners: All aspects of HSA are being developed in collaboration with key partners throughout the medical and health care communities. Mentors from UCLA's Latino Medical Student Association, Students of Color for Public Health and Peer Health Exchange are working closely with HSA students. USC's Center for Black Student and Cultural Affairs offer motivational workshops to help prepare our kids for college early in their high school careers. Other key partners already on board to provide curriculum development, access to labs and equipment, mentors, speakers, internships, site visits, and other resources include Cal State L.A. School of Criminal Justice and Criminalistics, David Geffen School of Medicine, L.A. County Public Health Department, L.A. Southwest College, Office of Supervisor Mark-Ridley Thomas, UCLA School of Public Health, UCLA Simulation Center, USC University Hospital, and Westside Family Health Center, to name a few. For more information about partnership opportunities and a list of our current partners, please click here.
Community: Based in South Los Angeles, HSA is located in Los Angeles County’s Service Planning Area (SPA) 6. Evidence shows that SPA 6 ranks as one of the most disadvantaged and under-resourced communities in the nation, particularly in medical services. The educational community surrounding HSA is made up of mainly non-charter public high schools that are primarily underperforming and/or overcrowded. HSA students would have otherwise attended schools serving a range of 2,000-3,000 students per campus. Historically, these schools perform well below the state average on the Academic Performance Index (API) and fail to meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements on an annual basis.
Enrollment: The 2011-12 school year will mark HSA's third year of operation. HSA has a full 9th, 10th and 11th grade class, which together consist of over 350 students drawn from local community middle schools in South Los Angeles. The school will reach full enrollment of approximately 475-500 students in its 4th year of operation. HSA is a neighborhood school and is open to all students. The school does not have a selective admissions policy.
Student Demographics: In the 2010-11 school year, the HSA student body was comprised of 59% Latino and 41% African-American students, and over 89% of our socio-economically disadvantaged families qualified for free or reduced lunch. Approximately 11% of HSA students received special education services. Demographics for the 2011-12 school year will be available soon.
Location: For the first two years HSA was co-located with Henry Clay Middle School at 12226 South Western Avenue in South Los Angeles through a Prop 39 Agreement with LAUSD. In our third year, HSA remains on this campus, now a co-location with Animo Middle School #3 and Animo Middle School #4. The school is currently seeking a site for the development of a permanent campus in the community of South Los Angeles that will enable our students to access health service facilities and professionals.
Leadership: The HSA leadership team brings a wealth of successful experience serving students in high poverty areas with historically underperforming schools. Principal Erik Elward has been an educator for over twelve years, and began his career in education teaching English at Gardena High School. During his seven-year tenure within urban charter high schools, he has served in leadership capacities as a department chair, curriculum coach, new teacher mentor, and assistant principal. A graduate of U.C. Berkeley, he received a Master's Degree through the Principal Leadership Institute at UCLA. He recently completed his Doctor of Education at USC. Mr. Elward has an assistant principal and a full team of highly qualified teacher leaders to ensure delivery of a rigorous curriculum with high expectations for all students.
Performance: As a result of the instructional model and the dedication of its staff and partners, HSA is already making significant strides:
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HSA's first class of students came to the school with an incoming aggregate student API score (from grade 8) of 511, the lowest of any Alliance high school. After just one year of hard work at HSA, their score went up to 667 - a growth of 156 points! The average state API increase for high schools was just nine points during the 2008-09 school year. 2010 scores for the district schools located closest to HSA's current site are as follows: Washington Preparatory High School - 546, Locke High School - 552, and Gardena High School - 586. Scores for the 2010-11 school year have not yet been released.
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HSA had an Average Daily Attendance (ADA) rate of over 96% in the 2010-11 school year.
Early Impact on Students: By introducing students to the health services field, HSA is already helping to shape their futures. Sophomore Jamie had always dreamed of being an OB/GYN, but didn't think it would be possible. Now in her second year at HSA, Jamie is seeing things differently. "Health Services Academy impacts me to further think outside my boundaries and go into the career of my dreams," she said recently. Aldair, also a 10th grader, had told his Medical Science Teacher throughout his 9th grade year that he just wanted to work with computers and had no interest in medicine. By the end of the year, he had decided to pursue a career in bioengineering. After a visit to the UCLA Simulation Center during our first school year, one HSA freshman said of the experience, "I seriously know what I want to do with my life now that I've had that special opportunity to experience first hand what doctors do. That totally set off a lightbulb in my head."
Long-term Impact: Research has shown health care workers from underrepresented minority groups are more likely to care for minority patients and serve in high-poverty, underserved communities. Based in one of the most disadvantaged and under-resourced communities in the nation, particularly in medical services, there is a need in HSA’s community for health care professionals with the same racial and ethnic demographics. HSA’s curriculum and programs will work to promote diversity in the health professions and help reduce health care disparities evident in South Los Angeles.