WHO
The SEP American Public High School Academy features the direct cooperation of a United States School District (public school system) with a Chinese School District or individual private school. On the American side, this involves the approval of the School District’s School Board, the District Administrator (or Superintendent), and the State’s Department of Education (or Instruction). On the Chinese side, the program requires the approval of an individual school’s owner if private, as well as the approval of the local CCP representative, the Principal of the school, the local Education Ministry, and the PRC Ministry of Education in Beijing.
The School District Administrator is directly involved in the selection of the Chinese schools, the students, and the facilities. The District Administrators also oversee the hiring of the State-certified Teachers for the Program. SEP works directly with the School Districts in a cooperative arrangement to provide American State-certified teachers from the participating American School Districts to a Chinese school to teach English high school curricula (determined by the requirements of the given School District for graduation), in conjunction with Chinese teachers, who will also teach the students the requirements for a Chinese high school diploma, as well. The American high school teachers are required to teach the exact school curricula as the United States high school, as well as supplemental English courses and either TOEFL, SAT, ACT or AP courses, and to help with the student’s applications to American universities.
The Academy within the schools in China is maintained by a Chinese Principal and an American Principal, in cooperation with the School’s authorities and local government officials.
WHAT
The SEP American Public High School Academy consists of a 3 year high school experience wherein the student will earn credits directly from the participating American public high school, be registered in the American public high school, and upon completion of the high school’s and the School District’s requirements for graduation, will receive an actual American public high school diploma directly from the participating American public high school. The student will also simultaneously complete the legal requirements for a Chinese high school diploma. This can be accomplished by the Chinese student testing out of several required courses for the American diploma, such as math and science courses. A curriculum schedule of classes has been worked out to accommodate the Chinese student completing both diplomas and not having too heavy a workload.
The SEP American Public High School Academy is a college preparatory program. All courses are geared toward preparing students for success at university. The college preparatory program focusses on four major areas: English, Mathematics, Social Studies, and Natural Sciences.
The students will earn slightly more credits than is required for college admissions in any university or college in the USA, thus ensuring a better university application. Students choosing a more rigorous high school curriculum have higher success rates at university.
WHEN
The school year will consist of two to three terms, September through January and March through July, with perhaps a summer session if needed to complete the US School District’s requirements. There will be holiday time in which the school will remain open, but no high school subject classes will be taught for the months of February and August. Holidays will be determined collectively between SEP and the participating US School District’s.
WHERE
SEP is responsible for providing appropriate facilities for teaching and administering a satellite outlet of an American high school for Chinese national students residing in China. This means SEP will provide a building or meaningful facilities that will meet the standards adhered to by any participating US School District.
SEP and the PRC will provide classrooms, offices, a gymnasium, dormitories, apartments, and recreational space – both indoor and outdoor – for PE classes.
Each school will include at least two classrooms per school equipped with at least 25 computer terminal stations per classroom. Computers will be equipped with Microsoft Office Suite – Word, Excel, PowerPoint – and the latest appropriate software. Electronic tablets will be used to contain State approved software, textbooks, and other useful software.
WHY
SEP began as a mutually beneficial idea between the United States of America and the People’s Republic of China in order to improve cultural relations, educational excellence, and to bridge educational differences between the two great nations, in order for Chinese and United States students alike to enhance their educational experiences, expand their cultural knowledge, and encourage lasting relationships between the countries’ youth.
In addition, SEP allows for Chinese students to earn American high school diplomas as well as Chinese high school diplomas, which gives the Chinese students authenticated American transcripts from the participating School Districts, thus ensuring credible GPAs and university applications, which include genuine applicant-written essays, out-of-classroom experiences, and community service verification. If the student is a high-level performer, they also have the opportunity to earn transcripted credit through participating universities, wherein, if the student has a high GPA, they are eligible to take University classes (while remaining in China) that will count as university credits, thus saving money and time when they go to an American university. This is not like the AP program that SEP also offers, rather, actual University classes being taught in China by certified American public school teachers.
The American participating School Districts earn a small percentage of the Chinese student’s tuition, which mainly covers the costs of administering the students into the School District’s record base, textbooks, software, and other expenses, with a small amount of profit for the American School District to use for research and technological development. The American School Districts also gain the benefit of creating jobs in their District through demand for teachers to be employed in China to work in the Satellite Education Program.
HOW
SEP is an organization that facilitates the cooperation between United States School Districts (public school system) and the People’s Republic of China. This program allows Chinese national students to obtain American high school diplomas through the completion of US School District and high school required curricula while remaining in China.
SEP works in conjunction with the People’s Republic of China and is operated by Chris Foos (Director and Liaison to the United States), Jasmine (Zhi Wen) Foos (Director of Development), Amelie Chai (Marketing Manager), and Grace Yin (Interpreter, Office Administrator).