Berkeley High Tours, (update)

1. The "touring season" for prospective students runs from October to March. The small group tours leave the Front Desk at 9:30 a.m. most mornings and are by reservation only. They last about an hour. The tours walk by classrooms--many of which have open doors --but they do not go into rooms for observation. The tours are not "orientation tours." (There are wonderful student-led tours for our incoming students in August.) The fall and early spring tours are directed towards parents who are deciding if Berkeley High is the appropriate school for their child. Prospective students are welcome but ONLY if accompanied by their parent or guardian.

To make a reservation, please contact Janet Huseby, BHS Volunteer Coordinator at jhuseby@pacbell.net. Let her know how many people in your party and what days you are available.

2. Many people have asked if they could visit Berkeley High on their own or if their student could "shadow" a current student. This is not possible. The school is focused on the education and security of our currently enrolled students. We are simply too large a school to accommodate unsupervised visitors.

3. Next steps for families coming from Longfellow, King, Willard: Representatives from Berkeley High School will visit each of the three BUSD middle schools over the next several weeks to conduct the scheduling process. This process includes a daytime student assembly where current BHS students will discuss their experiences with middle school students. Later that evening, administrators and counselors will give a brief presentation in both English and Spanish which will review the program choices at BHS. During that same week, high school counselors will come to the middle schools to guide students through the course request and program selection process.

Willard Middle School
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
10:00 a.m. Student Assembly
6:00 p.m.-6:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in Spanish
7:00 p.m.-7:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in English
Thursday, January 31-Friday, February 1, 2008
Online scheduling for 8th grade students at Willard.


King Middle School
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
10:00 a.m. Student Assembly
6:00 p.m.-6:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in Spanish
7:00 p.m.-7:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in English
Wednesday, February 6-Friday, February 8, 2008 (3 days)
Online scheduling for 8th grade students at King.


Longfellow Middle School
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
10:00 a.m. Student Assembly
6:00 p.m.-6:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in Spanish
7:00 p.m.-7:45 pm Curriculum Presentations in English
Wednesday, February 20-Thursday, February 21, 2008
Online scheduling for 8th grade students at Longfellow.

4. Next Steps for families coming from non district 8th grades
Students coming to BHS from middle schools outside the B.U.S.D. must first register with the admissions office and then may attend one of the following scheduling sessions to be held in the Berkeley High Library:

TUESDAY, MARCH 25, 2008 -6:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, MARCH 27, 2008 -6:30 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2008 -6:30 p.m.

How to register at Berkeley High
(Current BUSD middle school students do not have to register—they are automatically rolled over to Berkeley High.)

Starting on March 18, 2008 Parents/Guardians must first enroll their students at the BUSD. Admissions Office located at 1835 Allston Way (644-6504). The Admissions Office is open for enrollment Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., (closed 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.)

Parents must bring the student's BIRTH CERTIFICATE and THREE PROOFS OF BERKELEY RESIDENCY.

Proof of Berkeley residence - any THREE from the following list of CURRENT documentation, including at least one from category "d" that is imprinted with the name and Berkeley address of the parent/guardian, will be required to establish proof of residency:

A) California Driver's License or ID
B) Current bank statement
C) Action letter from Social Services, a letter from the State Office for Medi -Cal, a letter from the employer on company letterhead, or a paycheck stub
D) PG&E bill, phone bill (non-cellular), EBMUD bill, garbage bill or cable bill

Please note. It takes two business days for the Admissions Office to complete your enrollment and give you the registration packet for Berkeley High.


REGISTRATION AT BERKELEY HIGH SCHOOL: After receiving a school assignment/registration packet from the Admissions Office, parents must then register their student at Berkeley High School. Berkeley High Registration will take place at the BHS Administration Office, located at 1980 Allston Way, (corner of Allston Way and Milvia.)

It is necessary to bring your student's (1) immunization record (2) birth certificate and (3) an unofficial copy of their school transcript from the preceding school as well as the completed registration packet to register at BHS.

Keep in mind that while students from non-BUSD schools will not make program/course selections until late March, all students, regardless of when they make their selections, will be run in the school’s placement lottery at the same time.

5. An invaluable source of information for our school is the Berkeley High etree. This list-serve passes on the Student Daily Bulletin, the College Advisors Bulletin, and much more. To subscribe send an email to BHS-request@idiom.com with one word only in the subject line. If you are a prospective parent the etree can be overwhelming. Safi Kariv, a current BHS parent of a senior, has taken it upon himself to put together a etree for prospective parents which features posts he culls from the regular etree as well as information on registering and other items of interest. He calls this list serve the 08/12 Prospective Freshmen etree. If you are interested in signing on, send an email to Safi at zkariv@yahoo.com with subscribe in the subject line.

6. Last year The Berkeley High School Development Fund published a collection of Berkeley High college essays called True Admissions. All the essays were written by Berkeley High seniors. True Admissions raised over $8,000 for the College and Career Center-it also attracted the attention of Cody's Books and Stone Bridge Press who together have brought out a second edition under a new name: The Berkeley Book of College Essays. The book is appealing both to students who are contemplating writing their own college essays and to adults who are interested in the stories behind a large urban high school.

There are still a few copies of True Admissions for sale in the Berkeley High College and Career Center at the BHS Front Desk. The new book, The Berkeley Book of College Essays which includes 12 new BHS essays is available at Cody's and on line at Amazon.com.



Janet Huseby
BHS Volunteer Coordinator
jhuseby@pacbell.net
(510) 527-1130