Contra Costa School of Performing Arts (SPA), a California Exemplary Arts Education school, is located in Contra Costa County approximately forty-five miles east of San Francisco CA. SPA is a 6th-12th grade institution primarily serving students living in Central Contra Costa County (Walnut Creek, Concord, Pleasant Hill, Martinez, Pittsburg, Antioch and beyond). SPA is an arts integrated charter school that opened in August 2016 and currently serves just under 500 students in grades 6 through 12, with admission through a lottery system. The school began in 2016 with 300 students in grades 6 through 10 and has added another grade level each subsequent year. SPA is a project based, personalized learning environment with one-to-one computing. The ethnic diversity of the student population is 12% African American, 3% Asian, 36% Hispanic, 33% White, 12% Two or more Races, 1% Pacific Islander and 3% Other. Additionally, 9% are English Learners, 15% are Reclassified Fluent-English Proficient and 26% are Students with Disabilities. The rigorous seven-year program uniquely prepares students for a wide spectrum of performing arts careers. All students who successfully complete the program will exceed the UC/CSU “a-g” requirements. To meet the needs of all students and ensure that every student is given the opportunity to master the skills/standards, the faculty developed several intervention strategies centered on mastery learning. All students are scheduled in a self-directed learning period (Spotlight) that meets daily before lunch for high school and after lunch for middle school. In addition, every student has a mentor that follows their progress to review goals and discuss challenges.
