AVID, a program offered at Wenatchee High School, is a well-known but misunderstood class. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. Its mission statement is “to close the achievement gap by preparing all students for college readiness and success in a global society.” Aside from the rumors about intense notetaking for the class, most of WHS student assumptions about AVID are actually misconceptions. The Apple Leaf takes a look at these misconceptions to try to unravel the mysteries of AVID.

What is AVID?  

“I don’t know what it is.” “It’s a college prep class.” “It’s a more successful path.” “It gets kids into college.” “It’s just some class for kids who need extra help.”

Most of the students at WHS have heard the rumors about endless pages of Cornell notes, binder checks, and field trips in this mysterious class, but overall, hardly anyone can define it. It’s sometimes looked down upon, and thought of as a class for the dumb kids, or a class just for homework and studying. In reality, AVID is a college prep class that does an impressive job of preparing students for college; last year 100 percent of AVID graduates went on to college.

AVID is a program offered as a daily class elective in the Wenatchee School District for students in grades 7-12. Some kids start in middle school as soon as possible, and some join later in their middle or high school career. AVID students at WHS are divided by grade, with three freshman classes, three sophomore classes, two junior classes and two senior classes, along with eight AVID teachers.

To get in, students have to apply, as the program is competitive and more difficult than it’s given credit for. It’s geared towards ensuring that all students have access to a rigorous curriculum and to enable them to find success at college, its ultimate goal being to create self-sufficiency.

“It’s not a study skills class,” said AVID District Director Danielle Schafer-Cloke. “More than that, [it’s a class] to learn how to think, which I love.”

What do people do in AVID?

“Cornell notes.”  “Tutorials — I’m not really sure what those are though.”  “They go on field trips.”  “They take Cornell notes.”  “They take a lot of notes.”

AVID’s curriculum is based off of an idea called WICOR, which stands for Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization, and Reading. While that’s a lot to focus on, AVID does it by sticking to a semi-rigid schedule. Combining all the areas of WICOR creates an independent learner who is ready for college.

One day a week, usually Monday, there is a binder, planner, and grades check, hitting the organization target of AVID. Two other days a week, usually Tuesday and Thursday, there are tutorials. Tutorials consist of students splitting into small groups and looking at a problem they have in a class by asking questions about the issue. This pinpoints the point of confusion, which can then be turned into a point of understanding. Then, students make and follow steps to a solution to the problem.

“We do a lot of tutorials to get any help with any struggles we’re having [at the moment],” sophomore Jaylah Young said. “As a group, they help lead us to what it is we are trying to figure out.”

Cornell notes are also a big part of AVID. Proven to help students learn and understand material, it’s natural that they would be used often. AVID students do a page of notes per class per day, which makes 25-30 a week, depending on the student’s schedule.

“[Cornell] notes can be really helpful, but they can also become meaningless,” sophomore Arturo Diaz said. “We have notes for every class, so if you have a party in a class, you have to write about the party.”

The remaining days of the week are spent doing things such as games, socratic seminars, philosophical discussions, projects, inquiries, and other activities to help build knowledge and skills. There are also age-based projects that change yearly, such as teaching learning strategies to seventh-graders, helping freshmen navigate their new high school life, and guiding seniors through scholarship and college applications.

Who is in AVID?

“People who want to go to college.” “Kids working at a higher level.” “Kids whose parents haven’t gone to college.” “Kids who will be the first in their family to go to college.”  “People who need extra help.”

AVID is a program that works for anyone, but is aimed especially towards kids who are struggling, even if they don’t seem like it. AVID started at least seven years ago to help these kids, according to Schafer-Cloke.

“We had a lot of programs for kids who were already successful, and [programs] to help rescue failing kids, but none for anyone in the middle — the ones who got B’s and C’s, but should have been getting A’s and B’s,” Schafer-Cloke said. Schafer-Cloke also said that she wishes AVID would have been available to her when she was trying to navigate herself to college.

“[A rumor] about AVID is that it’s only for kids that are from the lower class, are Mexican, or don’t have financial support,” Young said. Young doesn’t fit the stereotype that exists about AVID students, coming from a financially stable and white background, with both parents having gone to college. She joined AVID in seventh grade and is continuing with the program.

“Some of the kids come from high poverty, but there are a lot of other circumstances,” Schafer-Cloke said. “Divorce, a death in the family, upheaval, or a move can all make a student need more [support].”

What are the advantages to AVID?

“It’s a class for people to get into the smart classes.” “It prepares kids for college.”

AVID has the main goal of preparing kids for college, and one way to do that is to show students the colleges through field trips. Seventh-graders and seniors go to Central Washington University, and in between there is a different college visit for each grade. AVID students also get additional help, if wanted, in finding and filling out scholarship applications that can allow them to go to the college of their dreams. While there is no true equivalent of AVID in college, students who immerse themselves in the program will find themselves well prepared for life after graduation.

AVID also teaches students skills that will help them later in life, as well as in college. Organization is a big deal, practiced through the regular in-class checks, and very important when you’re on your own. So are people skills, developed in class by learning how to work together, how to act, and how to ask for help. For some, learning these skills helped them come out of their shell a bit.

“One of the most important things you learn is how to advocate for yourself,” Schafer-Cloke said. “[However], one of the best things in a school this size is that each and every kid knows they have an advocate at school to fight for them — for anything. It’s almost parental to be an AVID teacher, [having] the same students for all four years.”