Southwest High School

Southwest High School, with the support of families and the surrounding community, is dedicated to providing an educational environment where students are challenged, excellence is expected and differences are valued.

We Will:

Exhibit social and personal responsibility

Apply a variety of research skills

Generate goals, set priorities, and create products

Listen, read, write, and speak effectively in English

Evaluate, analyze, and interpret information.

Set and achieve high academic standards

Located in El Centro, Southwest High serves more than 2300 students in grades nine through twelve.  We employ a credential staff of 91 to support our students.

Southwest High School is part of the Central Union High School District, located in the Imperial Valley in the southeast corner of California on the United States/Mexico border.

Imperial County is the ninth largest county in California, covering an area of 4,280 square miles. The area is predominantly rural and agricultural, geographically isolated from any large metropolitan city.

Imperial County is bordered by Riverside County to the north, San Diego County to the west, and Yuma County, Arizona, to the east. San Diego, 120 miles to the west, is the nearest metropolitan area. However, the border city of Mexicali is a short twelve miles away and includes a population of over 1,000,000. Central Union High School District is located in Imperial County’s county seat, El Centro, population 60,000. The 2000 Census data indicates that almost 25% of Imperial County residents lived below the poverty level as compared to 13.4% statewide.

Unemployment rates hover around 26%, the highest in the state. Over 81% of the county’s population is Latino, and 71% of the families speak a language other than English in the home.

The District serves approximately 3,400 students in grades nine through twelve in its secondary education program.

The California Basic Education Data System (CBEDS) figures collected in October, 2005, show that the student ethnic breakdown includes 84% Hispanic, 12% White, 2% Black and 2% Other. Over 36% of the students are identified as limited English proficient (LEP).

Our campus reflects the cultural and socioeconomic makeup of the community.

We offer a full range of academic and activity programs to meet the needs of all students, and are fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). Our last accreditation in May of 2005 recognized our excellence, granting us a six-year term of accreditation.

Our college preparatory courses fulfill the requirements necessary for admission to universities and colleges anywhere in the U.S. We have high quality programs in agriculture, technology, athletics, and we are especially proud of the Southwest Academy of Visual and Performing Arts (SAVAPA).

All of our core classes are available in English and Spanish. For those students transitioning from Spanish to English, the classes are taught using the SDAIE methodology

The community and parental support for education, both academic and co-curricular, is excellent. The Booster Clubs for music and athletics programs provide supplemental funding and support to enhance the total school program. Parents also participate in the School Site Council, Migrant Parents Committee, Bilingual Advisory Committee, District Curriculum Committee and the Board of Education.