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PALO ALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL 50 EMBARCADERO RD. PALO ALTO, CA 94301
U.S. POSTAGE
PAI D PALO ALTO PERMIT #44
Page 13
The Campanile Vol. CVIII, No. 1
Wednesday, September 24, 2025
Palo Alto High School, 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301
DIPLOMA DIVIDE !"#$%&'(#$)&*$"*")#+&,"&#%%&-%.#/0(%&12*+"3#&*$"4$#3&5"$&67689676:&)0'""+&;(#$<&0"33=/2,;&."20()&,$#/)*#$(/0;&0"/0($/)
D
uring its Aug. 10 meeting, the board of education heard a proposal from Assistant Superintendent of Innovation and Agility Jeong Choe to give students the chance to earn an Advanced Diploma beginning with the 2026-27 shcool year. Choe said this specialized diploma would be a way to o"er an opportunity for students to challenge themselves and gain recognition for their academic achievements. If approved, the program would expand on the AP Capstone program o"ered at Paly, which requires the completion of AP Seminar, AP Research and four additional AP classes with students having to score a three or higher on the AP tests for those classes. Choe said the Advanced Diploma would be a good way to promote PAUSD values. “#is College Board program emphasizes that students build skills in research, collaboration and communication, which are skills that we celebrate in PAUSD.” Choe's said in her presentation that to receive the Advanced Diploma, students would also need to complete an internship, participate in the Stanford Great Minds speaker series, either be a National Merit Scholar or have a qualifying ACT or SAT score, and create an oral defense portfolio in addition to the requirement of the AP Capstone. But the program has its critics, including teachers who say they weren’t consulted about the program before it was made public and who see the idea of an Advanced Diploma as a direct contradiction to the district’s pledge to focus on student mental health. AP Seminar and AP Research teacher Lucy Filppu said students in the AP Capstone program already have ways to shine through original research, peer mentorship and college-level portfolios, making the Advanced Diploma program an unneeded addition to an already thriving program. “We already help students stand out with the existing AP Capstone program and all the other APs we o"er,” Filppu said. “Creating even more advancement seems unnecessary and against our commitment to balance and student mental health.”
Students have also expressed concerns about the outside-of-school requirements. Senior and AP research student Dylan Chen, who also serves as a PAUSD Student Board Representative, said these requirements make an Advanced Diploma less accessible for students who lack the connections and resources to meet these requirements. He thinks it could especially negatively a"ect first-generation college students and low-income students. “First generation students join and excel at the (AP Capstone) pathway because the pathway has excellent support systems such as the peer mentorship program,” Chen said. “Adding the new diploma will create higher expectations, more competition and make a rigorous program even more difficult for disadvantaged first generation students who need more support.” Superintendent Don Austin, though, said parts of the Advanced Diploma criteria, such as the internship requirement, are still tentative,
allowing the Board of Education to make adjustments and increase accessibility if that is the way they want to move forward. “(Some students) have advantages we can't replicate for all students,” Austin said. “(#ey) can easily get internships due to connections, while other students might really have a hard time with it. We don't want the access to an internship to be a barrier, so we're still thinking that one through.” Senior and AP Seminar student Cole Baker said he is concerned students will feel pressure to participate in the program, even if it might not be the right pathway for them. “#is diploma forces everyone into this kind of rat race, which I think will (a"ect) the mental health of students,” Baker said. “I think a lot of people are going to feel forced, like, ‘I need to do this now,’ because everyone around them is doing it, even though it might not even give them any value.” AP Seminar teacher Corbin Dodd, who graduated from Paly in 2014, said the Advanced Diploma o"ering could potentially negatively a"ect students' self-esteem. “When I was a student here, I dropped down a math lane, and that really impacted my sense of how good I was at math,” Dodd said. “#at stayed with me
for at least a decade. I could see something similar happening with the Advanced Diploma, where essentially we would have a two-tiered system where students in the non-Advanced Diploma would believe they're not as smart as the students in the Advanced Diploma track.” But Choe said any program designed to advance students has the potential to increase pressure on students. “If implemented thoughtfully, with students’ wellness in mind, the Advanced Diploma could instead validate and celebrate the ongoing e"orts of students who are already engaged in rigorous coursework and want to continue challenging themselves,” Choe said. Junior and AP Seminar student Juliet Frick agrees and said recognizing students' achievements through a program like the Advanced Diploma could be a good way to reward hard-working students. “Anyone who puts in that much work and that much e"ort and that much extra time, I feel like they deserve to win an award for that,” Frick said. “If I did have time in my schedule to do that, or to qualify for that, it's definitely something that I would consider doing." Ultimately, Filppu said student achievement will continue whether or not an Advanced Diploma is approved by the board. “I’m not sure where student balance fits into the Advanced Diploma initiative,” Filppu said. “But, I am confident high achieving students will continue to thrive and be recognized.”
Leilani Chen Staff Writer
ETHAN CHAN / THE CAMPANILE
!"#$%&'()*>'#,&%"&;"=&,'2/?&#@"=,&,'(&-%.#/0(%&12*+"3#&*$"*")#+A& “I think that Palo Alto is already competitive enough. And I think that adding this advanced diploma will just add to the social and academic pressure of going to Paly.” — Alon Milman ('28)
“It shows how the district is succumbing to parents in this district, and I think it’s a stupid addition. It's just another thing kids will go for, but have no real impact on anything in the future.” — Paul Wang ('27)
"It's good to recognize students' achievements. #e one issue I have with the Advanced Diploma Program is the recognition actually happens at the very end of senior year, meaning that this recognition doesn't always give students the opportunity to show it to others." — Oscar Varodayan ('28)
“Advanced Diploma is a good opportunity for students who want it. If you're passionate about research and what this award entails, then just go for it. If you're not, then don't do it. It's not something you have to do.” — Joy Tan ('26)
“While I like that it's probably in some aspect giving recognition to students who are really high achieving, I worry about certain students feeling that they need to strive for that, and that they’ll feel pressured, possibly by parents, or by peers.” — Motoko Iwata ('26)
INTERVIEWS AND PHOTOS BY DASHEL CHUN AND ZOYA PRABHAKAR