Education Redefined At School Of Entrepreneurship And Technology

SAN DIEGO, CA -- For one former School of Entrepreneurship and Technology student, the path wasn’t always clear. In seventh grade, a teacher told him he was failure because he struggled to pass his classes despite having a clear gift for computer science.

It wasn’t until years later, when he enrolled at San Diego’s SET, formerly known as Coleman Tech Charter High, that he was able to succeed. The student embraced every technology class available at the school, giving him the motivation to pass core classes such as English and history. He went on to graduate from college in just three years before earning a job with American aerospace manufacturer, SpaceX.

“He fully embraced our model and helped me solidify what we need to do for our students,” said SET principal Neil McCurdy, who has been with the school since 2010. “He left feeling like a success because he was.”

The student is just one example of hundreds who have elevated their unique talents before graduating from SET because of the school’s individualized learning programs.

The school, which has a one to 10 student-teacher ratio, has a mission of creating social entrepreneurs by helping each student learn and develop their own talents and interests, McCurdy said.

“I think the traditional school model was one designed in the 18th century to produce factory workers and we haven’t changed education much since then,” McCurdy said. “(At SET), we really target the individual. We’ve got the small-school-feel where we know every kid by name.”

McCurdy said each grade level has a unique program, along with the common core classes, to really engage a student. For example, freshmen students take a leadership class where they learn about responsibility and self-esteem. The following year, students learn how to use their talents to contribute to a team.

During their four-year career at SET, students will develop “passion projects” where they find problems and work toward solving those problems.

“Whatever the talent the student comes in with, we try to harvest that talent,” McCurdy said. “We think of entrepreneurship as starting a company but it isn’t the true essence of entrepreneurship. It’s the ability to see a problem and develop tools to solve that problem. These are our future leaders so they need to have strong interpersonal skills, believe in themselves, and be independent thinkers.”

The forward-thinking lesson plan allows students to take their passion outside of the school too, McCurdy said.

“It’s all about empowering students… being your true, authentic self,” McCurdy said. “It’s producing students who are much more prepared to take on life and feel like they can actually make a difference in the world.”

The nonprofit high school currently has a student body of 200, but McCurdy hopes to grow it to 230 students.

For more information about the School Of Entrepreneurship And Technology, go to http://www.sethigh.org.

--Photo courtesy of School Of Entrepreneurship And Technology