School Profile

Alameda Science and Technology Institute (ASTI) is located on the College of Alameda campus on the West End of Alameda, CA. First opened in 2004, ASTI is a small, public, Early College High School in the Alameda Unified School District. ASTI students earn several units of college credit during their high school years. Many students complete California’s IGETC (Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum) requirements. Some also receive their Associate of Arts or Sciences degree by the time they graduate from high school. ASTI has been awarded National Blue Ribbon, CA Gold Ribbon and Distinguished School, and CA Green Ribbon.

 

As an Early College High School (ECHS), ASTI adheres to ECHS core principles. Most important to ASTI is a stated priority of the national ECHS initiative "to serve low-income young people, first-generation college goers, English language learners, and students of color, all of whom are statistically underrepresented in higher education and for whom society often has low aspirations for academic achievement." ASTI is committed to this principle.

ASTI is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges through June 30th, 2028.

ASTI is a semester-based school. 9th & 10th graders take six classes each semester. For the 2020-21 school year, however, ASTI’s schedule was modified in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Classes started fully online, and students were enrolled in three classes each term (fall/spring) earning a year’s credit and two semester grades for each class. There was also a Remote Program option with students completing classes via the online provider Edmentum or UC Scout. Courses not successfully completed earned an NM (No Mark). Due to impacted class sizes and course availability, some ASTI students took courses concurrently at our sister schools, Alameda and Encinal High, which is noted as such on their transcripts. Peralta continues to offer the majority of courses fully online with only around 30% of college classes offered in-person.

Most ASTI students take the SAT, not the ACT. Therefore, only the SAT averages have been provided. These scores reflect the middle 50% in a sample size of 254 student tests from the Classes of 2017-2023. For the classes of 2021 and 2022, very few students took the SAT due to COVID-19 testing cancellations and extremely limited test center availability. The number of students taking the SAT has declined as the UC and CSU dropped the SAT entirely for the class of 2022.

Critical Reading: 560-670        Math: 590-680

ASTI has a student-centered, student-driven approach to education. We encourage and expect our students to
engage in school-site planning. Students participate in Leadership, School Site Council, and the Parent Teacher Student Association. Almost all school-based clubs and organizations are founded by students. Students plan and execute many school traditions, such as Bonding Day and our Awards Nights.

ASTI’s main mission is to prepare a diverse student body for college-level work. ASTI offers additional tutoring, academic seminars, counseling support, and leadership opportunities to reach that end. ASTI does not offer inter-scholastic sports or honors societies. In the junior and senior years, many students’ high school and college schedules make it difficult to engage in the level of extracurricular involvement typically found in traditional high schools. Students may play sports for other schools if they maintain their GPA, live in the home district, and talk
to the coach.

ASTI students take a prescribed, college-preparatory course of study during the 9th and 10th grades, designed to prepare students for full-time college course loads during their 11th and 12th grade years. With the exception of math, every 9th and 10th grader takes the same coursework. If students take college courses in language, because of the added rigor, the UC system considers the first 1 semester of college language as 2 years of high school study.
Listed below are the courses of study that this year’s graduating class took during their 9th and 10th grade years.

 

During 11th and 12th grade, ASTI students take most academic coursework in the Peralta Community College District (PCCD). They create their own full-time course loads (at least 2-3 college classes per semester) with the help of the ASTI counselor. All upperclassmen take these college courses along with 3 ASTI classes, which may include subject-specific seminars, Multimedia Production, Economics, or Leadership. Some high school requirements, such as English, must be met at the college. Other courses are chosen based on personal interest, IGETC certification, or the pursuit of an AA degree. IGETC courses satisfy general education requirements transferrable to both the California State Universities and the Universities of California.

Here is the recommended coursework to complete IGETC. ASTI students average 60 college units by high school graduation.

ASTI students do not receive preferential scheduling within the Peralta Community College District. If a course is not offered, is impacted, or does not fit with the students’ other classes, they must change their course of study. Students report their courses as accurately as possible; if uncontrollable reasons force students to change their 12th grade spring course work, students have been advised to report discrepancies to colleges immediately.

A 15 unit-cap is in place on ASTI. If students go over the unit cap, they must pay general fees and per-unit fees for all classes. This restricts students from taking as many classes as they would like, particularly in science, math, and foreign language, where classes are often 5 units each.

ASTI transcripts reflect both high school and college coursework, even if they are not used for high school graduation. Every college class worth 3 college units or more is considered one year of study and given 10 high school credits. GPA’s include all coursework for which the student has received a letter grade. NO ADDITIONAL WEIGHT IS GIVEN FOR COLLEGE COURSEWORK. Because of the philosophy and small size of the school, as well as the diversity of the students’ schedules, students are not assigned a class rank.

Highest GPA: 4.0     Lowest GPA: 2.58     Average GPA: 3.61

77% of the class of 2022 declared intent to enroll in a four year college, 15% in community college, and 1 student entered the military. The remainder took a gap year or started working. Colleges & universities where ASTI graduates attend include the following: