MENLO PARK – Reinstating honors classes for high school freshmen has surfaced as a top election issue in the race for two open seats on the Sequoia Union High School Board.
Beginning in 2016, four of the seven high schools within the district eliminated English, science and math honors classes for ninth graders and placed students at mixed levels in a move called detracking.
In Sept. 2023, the district released a 121-page report explaining that more students are doing well in advanced courses after ninth-grade honors classes were eliminated.
The controversial move has remained a highly contested topic among students, parents, administrators and the board since the report’s release. More time was devoted to this issue at an Oct. 10 candidate forum in Menlo Park than any other.
“The data is telling us that recent course changes are not helping our students,” Jacob Yuryev, a trustee candidate for Area B, said. Yuryev, a 2024 graduate of Carlmont High School, restoring the honors curriculum is his first priority if elected.
The board consists of five members elected to Areas A-E for four-year terms. Area B has been represented by Carrie Du Bois since its inception. Area E has been held by Shawneece Stevenson for the past four years. Both candidates have decided not to run for re-election in August.
Later that month, disagreement over its findings devolved into a seven-hour-long trustee meeting.
The six candidates – three running for Area B and three running for Area E – engaged in the forum to answer voters’ questions ahead of the upcoming election on Nov. 5. Area B includes parts of Belmont, San Carlos and Redwood City and Area E covers East Palo Alto, North Fair Oaks and parts of East Menlo Park.
Area B Candidates on Detracking
Daniel Torunian, Yuryev and Mary Beth Thompson are the three candidates running for the one open seat in Area B. Turunian, a former PayPal executive, and Yuryev support a motion to direct staff to restore freshman honors classes. Thompson opposes this motion. Thompson is the principal at Summit Prep, a charter school in the district.
The candidates embraced different findings within the district report to support his or her positions. Yuryev said the district lacks “reliable data” to conclude that the increase in AP enrollment and test scores is because of detracking.
Turunian said it is the middle school’s responsibility to standardize high school readiness curricula to ensure student success in ninth grade.
Thompson defended detracking, citing that “only one or two” classes from the ninth grade curriculum were removed after the policy change. Thompson was the only candidate at the forum who supports detracking.
“We place a lot of pressure on our students, and I know this as a high school principal because I see it everyday.” Thompson said.
Area E Candidates on Detracking
Tonga Victoria, Jon Bryant and Maria Cruz are the three candidates running for Area E. Like Area B, only one out of the three candidates will be elected. Victoria supports a motion to direct staff to restore freshman honors classes. Bryant and Cruz are undecided.
Victoria works in the middle school “feeder pipeline” to the district, and agreed with Turunian’s point that stronger “investment in high school prep” prior to ninth grade is a viable alternative to detracking.
Ram Duriseti, a father of two alumni of the Sequoia Union High School District, believes the removal of honors classes was a mistake.
“Many parents of children under the current SUHSD Board remain silent [on detracking] for fear of accusations of racism or retribution directed at their children,” Duriseti said. “Honors elimination proponents have labeled the students and parents advocating to restore AS classes as ‘pro-tracking.’ This is akin to labeling those of us who support abortion access as ‘pro-death.’ The corrosive dynamic is an inevitable consequence of mixing activism and education.”
While detracking was the most-discussed topic of the forum, other topics included student mental health, teacher shortages and district budgets.
“One of the things that I am not hearing so far is the mental health crisis,” Thompson said about halfway through the forum. “This is a policy that can be brought to the board that has not already been brought to the board, that is also data-proven.”
In an interview after the forum, Thompson expressed frustration that detracking was the main topic discussed among the candidates.
“The fact that one third of this entire forum was dedicated to detracking and honors classes, that was a little bit hard for me,” Thompson said. “Just knowing when there are so many other issues that our students deserve to be heard on.”
