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By Dixie Weekly News
Tuacahn High School has been named Washington County's top high school by the Sutherland Institute, a Utah-based think tank committed to shaping Utah policy and law.
The school isn't resting on its laurels after the accolade, though, and school administrators are already on the move, polishing up the school's mission statement, evaluating the new THS academy system and expanding the program to attract students who are truly serious artists.
“They'll be taking high school-level classes from many people who are professional artists,” said THS Principal Bill Fowler. “Our dance program, our music program, our theater program and our art program offer instructional opportunities for students from people who have been there and done that. It's a practical application of a lot of the theories that they study in other schools. They learn onstage in the dance studio in a performance arena. But they have to combine the academic side of it, too. It's just as rigorous academically as it is performance-wise.”
Some mistakenly think that Tuacahn is strictly an arts school where academics are a low priority, Fowler said, but nothing could be further from the truth.
“(Some students) think they can come out and focus on an academy without having to do college prep courses,” he said. “Last year we placed 80 percent of our graduates in colleges around the country, which is way above the national average.”
Tuacahn's new academy system, which allows students to focus on one specific artistic area – similar to a college major – while attending Tuacahn, prepares them for pursuing that emphasis collegiately. But students should make no mistake that, even though artistic learning is a main focus at Tuacahn, academics are a high priority, as well.
“Sometimes people are amazed to see that we actually have to take math and science here. That always makes me laugh,” said THS senior Jacob Huskinson as he slapped his book-laden backpack.
Beginning with the 2007-2008 graduating class, all THS students must graduate from the academy system as well as fulfill the state general education requirements that every high school student in the state must pass.
Because Tuacahn High School is a public, tuition-free school, the state of Utah does not allow them to audition their students. Anyone that wants to attend can apply at the school or on their website, and each application is given a number. The numbers are then literally drawn from a hat, and those lucky students are entered on the rolls permanently until they graduate. This lottery system is common among all charter schools in the state. However, for a charter school that has an emphasis on college placement in the arts, naturally the administration hopes to get the word out that at Tuacahn High, if your student makes it through the lottery, they must be college bound and have a compelling interest in the arts.
“Many students come in thinking that they will be able to slide through high school without being noticed, but the new academy system encourages the exact opposite,” said academy designer and director Jan Shelton Hunsaker.
The biggest difference between Tuacahn High School and any other school is that the only electives offered besides Spanish, German, and seminary are those in the performing and visual arts. The academy system requires students to choose all their electives in one main course of study, much like you would if you were in college working on your major. There are currently five academies at THS: Music, Dance, Actor Training, Musical Theatre and Technical Theatre. The school recently added a new academy called Visual and Graphic Design.
“We feel like our art and computer graphics classes are very competitive and have developed this new academy to attract kids that are computer design savvy or comfortable with a paintbrush,” Hunsaker said.
With the new academy under way, Tuacahn High School has officially opened the flood-gates to applications for the 2008-2009 school year. Tuacahn has committed to keeping class sizes small, and in order to find out how many available seats are open, all returning students must fill out an application every year, even though they are not required to go through the lottery.
Applications for the fall 2008 school year are due February 15th this year, earlier than in the past, and Fowler anticipates there will be about 100 spaces open, which includes new freshman enrollment. Once the final number is decided upon for each grade level, the numbering system begins and happy phone calls are made.
“Anyone can apply to get into Tuacahn; it’s 100 percent public, 100 percent accredited and 100 percent free,” Fowler said. “We want you to know that if you are a performer/artist who has hopes to go to college and succeed in doing what you love, you will get a lot of personalized attention here, both artistically and academically.”
All students are encouraged to apply before February 15th to make it into the first lottery draw, but applications are taken all year long as spots open up during the year.
Parents and students can count on an excellent educational experience and an emphasis on college preparation at Tuacahn, Fowler said, as well as inspirational learning among excellent teachers and the beautiful red rocks of Tuacahn.
“It's a fun school. It's a different school,” Fowler said. “There's a wonderful atmosphere here where everybody's accepted. There's an anticipation by every student that they're going to have to work hard.”
To apply to Tuacahn High School or for more information, call 652-3201 or visit www.tuacahnhs.org. Tuacahn High School is located at 1100 Tuacahn Dr. in Ivins.
“What we as educators try to do is get them to focus on what their interests and abilities are,” Fowler said.
How many open slots? For artistically inclined students, why is Tuacahn a great opportunity? What would you say to students who think Tuacahn is an “easy” school?

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