Bonita Vista High’s (BVH) students preparing to select their courses for the 2022-2023 school year can now find newly added classes to their class selection list. BVH now offers Physics Honors, CTE Cybersecurity Honors, Botany and Zoology and Biology Forensics for students.

Discussion surrounding the addition of classes began on Nov. 8 of 2021. BVH principal Roman Del Rosario Ed.D. sent an email to his staff on Nov. 8 that included the ‘New Course Proposal’ form for teachers who had new course ideas to pitch. Del Rosario discussed individual class proposals with those who proposed it and it was later reviewed with the Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC). 

“Ultimately, I make decisions on what new courses I want to offer next year based on the input I get from both the teacher [who proposed the course], FAC and by doing my own analysis. I send those [proposals] to the curriculum department and then they inform us on Jan.25, of their decision,” Del Rosario said.

The Curriculum Advisory Committee of Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD) curriculum department determines whether a class will be approved and offered at BVH. In the instance that the Committee requires further information, a presentation will be made to further explore the new course idea. This year the Botany and Zoology class, proposed by Earth Science and Environmental Biology teacher Adrienne Marriott, needed a presentation made by Del Rosario and herself. 

“Since Botany and Zoology is a class that’s not offered in any other school in [SUHSD], they asked Ms. Mariott and myself to present the class [proposal]. Ms. Marriott did an outstanding job [of] letting them know her vision for the class and they approved it,” Del Rosario said.

Before proposing the course, Marriott was influenced by her senior students who felt that there were not enough choices for electives and found that Botany and Zoology was an uncommon elective offered in high schools. She later decided to propose the new class, looking to create an elective that will engage students throughout the school year.

“I think [the students taking the class] are really going to appreciate the diversity of life that we have in the San Diego region and learn to notice the small details out there,” Marriott said.

Marriott mentions that adjusting to the new block schedule will provide her students with hands-on experience through labs and more time to cover the structures and functions of animals. She adds that students will be exposed to new concepts that differ “day to day and hour by hour.” Marriott shares her passion for the subject and the many opportunities she hopes to provide for students who join the Botany and Zoology class.

“When an instructor is excited to teach something that’s always a good thing, I am super excited to teach this [Botany and Zoology class]. I [was a Teacher assistant] at San Diego State University (SDSU) as a grad student, I taught the [undergraduate] Zoology lab there [SDSU]. I am going back to my roots,” Marriott said.

Biology Forensics—one of the other classes proposed—has been a topic of interest among students, according to Accelerated Biology teacher Joseph Szakovits. After being the former advisor of a Forensics club at BVH, Szakovits decided to propose the class to Del Rosario and teach it once it was approved. 

“I had a sense that it was something that would have interest because I remember there being a lot of it in [the Forensics] clubs. [It is] an opportunity to teach a subject that I am personally interested in and hopefully will attract students that are interested,” Szakovits said.

Afterwards, he found that the class existed in Otay Ranch High (ORH) and Eastlake High (ELH). The curriculum for the Biology Forensics class still needs development and Szakovits decided to reach out to teachers at ORHS and ELHS to create a set curriculum. The course is designed to apply specific concepts from criminal and civil law during class time, according to Szakovits.

“Every class is going to be different. There will be some days where we will be presenting and some days where students will be working on projects and labs. I am hoping to get various guest speakers from relevant professions [law enforcement]. My hope is that [the class] is going to have a variety of different activities,” Szakovits said.

Del Rosario mentions the new Physics Honors course will allow for advanced physics students to take a class where they aren’t candidates for college credit, but it will still be weighted on a 5.0 Grade Point Average (GPA) scale. Similarly, the CTE cybersecurity honors course is intended for students who took computer science principles and are interested in completing a career technical path. The administration added new classes for students attending the next year to gain new experiences.

“We’ve [administration] added all these courses because it’s really important that students get prepared and excited about what comes next. I encourage students to take the time and to be thoughtful in their selections of their courses,” Del Rosario said.