Buhach High gives costly IB program temporary reprieve

Atwater students currently taking International Baccalaureate courses at the only Merced County school offering them will be allowed to complete the rigorous academic program, but they may be the last to do so, according to school district officials.

During a board of trustees meeting Wednesday night, officials said the program at Buhach Colony High School would continue long enough for current students to complete it.

Tammie Calzadillas, assistant superintendent at the Merced Union High School District, said school administrators are “committed to see students through” the academic program. But officials also said the future of the 3-year-old program is uncertain, meaning Buhach’s Class of 2019 might be the last to graduate with IB honors.

International Baccalaureate is a program in which students take on high-level coursework for college credit and the qualification to apply to foreign universities.

Buhach Colony Principal Steve Hobbs told the Merced Sun-Star last month that the costs of staffing, materials and training for the program can account for up to one-third of the budget the district allocates for Buhach.

The program serves 92 students, a small portion of the total student population of about 1,700. The number of students in the program does not justify the costs, school officials told parents at a meeting in December.

Parents and students angry about the district’s proposal and short notice showed up at the school board meeting last month. They asked the board to reconsider the impact the closure of the program would have on students. Sophomores and freshmen said they had already dedicated much time and effort toward receiving IB status. Students blamed the school’s lack of recruitment efforts for the program’s low enrollment numbers.

Brandt Kreuscher, a Buhach High parent whose sophomore daughter is in the IB program, said he is thankful that current students will be able to complete the program, but also that IB is too valuable of an asset to give up.

“This is a unique gem,” Kreuscher told the board of trustees Wednesday night. “The accreditation process for the district was significant and the program is still in its infancy.”

“We have an obligation to these students who want this in our community,” he added.

Modesto High School in Stanislaus County is the only other nearby school that offers IB courses.

After Wednesday’s meeting, parents expressed appreciation and relief. They were glad their voices were heard, but there’s a larger picture, they said – one of providing academic programs of quality in this community.

School administrators said they hope to make a final decision about the IB program for future students within the next six weeks.

This story was originally published January 14, 2016 at 6:39 PM with the headline "Buhach High gives costly IB program temporary reprieve."