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Center High School

Center High School

MCA

MCA Logo 2020
 
Center High School's Media Communications Academy (MCA) is an award winning school within a school. 
The MCA was created to assist students who were looking for more than the traditional high school model. Student schedules include four MCA courses sophomore and junior years and three-four MCA courses senior year. By signing an annual contract, the student becomes responsible for their own success.
MCA teachers work as a team to assist students with goal setting, personal development, and academic success while monitoring progress. The benefits from being in the MCA are numerous:
- Smaller class sizes
- Cross curricular projects
- Real world field trips
- Hosting and participating in media events
- State of the art computer labs
- Television studio  
The use of technology during instruction enhances student learning. Students create integrated curriculum projects as well as digital presentations all 3 years in the academy, while mastering Common Core standards. 
Mentoring is a key component for success. Local business partners mentor students to provide real world experiences and opportunities for internships.
Field trips are designed to improve attendance and academic performance, while creating unique bonding experiences. MCA students visit several colleges and television studios, film studious, as well as tour historical locations and attend cultural events. 
Freshmen have the opportunity to take the pre-academy electives that may increase their opportunity for acceptance into the academy their sophomore year. 
MCA graduates have been accepted into CSU, UC, and private colleges and many are working in the various media fields. 
Our mission in the MCA is to prepare students for life, thus our motto has become = LIFE PREP.
 
MCA is supported by California Partnership Academies and the Dept. of Education. Funding comes from CA Dept. of Ed., Center Joint Unified School District, and local businesses. 
media classes

media classes

Intro to Media and Design (Media 1)​
Introduction to Media and Design is an introductory course within the CTE ICT Pathway. The contents of the course are divided into a few ways digital media can be used to present information, entertain, and create art. Students will develop their foundational knowledge of industry standard programs such as Adobe Creative Cloud and explore intellectual property, ethics, and copyright law. Topics include visual design, audio recording, video editing, animation, desktop publishing, website design, and social media design. Assignments will be created to explore media and design's history, concepts, and skills. The course also explores twenty-first-century career opportunities.

Intermediate Media and Design (Media 2)​
The intermediate Media and Design course is a concentrator course within the CTE ICT Pathway. The course will expand students’ knowledge about social media marketing trends within the digital age and help them adapt web and print media designs. This course allows students to produce multimedia projects from concept (content gathering/research) to project completion (authoring/transmission), considering media used by enterprises or mobile apps for marketing, corporate communication, and public use. Through Adobe Creative Cloud, Canva, and other media, students will be responsible for creating and printing needs for school events and activities. Students will work on broadcast news and events production, putting together a compelling news show or live event broadcast on time. The assignments in this course will demonstrate student's ability to apply design thinking skills to create designs for local partnerships. Students will explore career options and take certification exams. 

Advanced Media and Design (Media 3)​
Advanced Media and Design course is a capstone course within the CTE ICT Pathway. This class is an advanced-level course that further explores the utilization of the artistic elements and principles of design within a real-world context. The course will expand students’ knowledge about social media marketing trends within the digital age and adapt designs for web and print media. Students develop a professional industry standard portfolio and provide design work for the school and community. Throughout this course, students will be utilizing critical thinking and interpersonal skills to develop and produce graphic design and video-based projects. Students will work on broadcast news and events production, putting together a compelling news show or live event broadcast on time. As part of these projects, students produce professional-level media, images, documents, audio and video clips within Adobe Creative Cloud, Canva, and other media. Students will continue to explore career options and take certification exams. 
STAFF MEMBERS  2024-2025
 

STAFF MEMBERS  2024-2025
 

TEACHER NAME TEACHER EMAIL WEBSITE
Amy Chaney, Program Director aechaney@centerusd.org
Kristen Clements clements@centerusd.org  
Bonnie Klatt Bklatt@centerusd.org  
Scott Elfving selfving@centerusd.org  
Brina Jope bjope@centerusd.org  
James Magedman jmagedman@centerusd.org  
Heather Woods hwoods@centerusd.org