John Williams

EDUC350
Setting and Context of Ferguson High School
Observing at Ferguson High School in Loveland, Colorado has been a
fantastic environment for us to learn. No one school is the same and
Ferguson High differs from most traditional High Schools in a variety of ways.
Considered an alternative high school, Ferguson caters to the education
needs of students from all walks of life and across the districts demographic
lines. Ferguson High is the alternative choice school for Thompson School
District in the greater Loveland area. As a school of choice, the community
of students at Ferguson is vastly diverse and working there has been an eye
opening experience.
Thompson School District is situated in Northern Colorado within the
boundaries of Larimer County. As Larimer Countys second largest school
district Thompson enrolled 15,000 students in the 2014-2015 year.
Thompson School District contains 44 schools and education programs that
aim to suit the needs of all students in the area. Thompson School District is
a majority white district with Hispanics making up the largest minorityi.
As an alternative high school, Ferguson is situated to fit many of the
specific needs of academically and behaviorally challenged students in and
around Thompson School District. As of the 2014-2015 school year, Ferguson
High had 115 students enrolled and serves as a summer school location for
the greater district. During the summer, online credit recovery courses are

offered at this location, along with a small grouping of traditional classroom

summer school coursesii. For our purposes in EDUC 350 we are fortunate
enough to be allowed into one of these three classroom settings. Will
Sherman is our residing teacher for the Videography class offered at 9 AM.
This classroom is Mr. Shermans standard room, so the environment is
his creation. Will, as he prefers to be called (teachers at Ferguson are on a
first name basis with their students), teaches five students in the 9-10 AM
slot, three females and 2 males. The two male students are aged 16 and 20,
while the three females are aged between 18 and 20. Two of the ladies in
the class are mothers, including one who has two children. From what I have
gathered, all five students are exceptionally smart and aware students. They
all have had mixed success in the traditional school settings and have found
their way to Ferguson because of the desire to better themselves. They all
show great maturity in this desire, despite their situations at home and their
past experiences. I have become wildly impressed with their drive and
abilities, and especially the support this mixed group gives each other and
given to them by their instructor. There is an air of comradery in this setting.
The climate I would describe as, were almost done guys, keep up the good
work. At least three of these students, both mothers included, have serious
aspirations to continue to college and I have little doubt they will find nothing
but success in their experiences there.

Citations:
Thompson School District, Statistics. Web, 2015,
http://www.thompsonschools.org/page/2347

i Thompsonschools.org
ii Ibid