
ACE Student Project Work
Please view some ACE Students' project work.

AF First Prize Group Entry 2020

AF First Prize Group Entry

Aldo Macedo ACE 3-4

House Design 2- Van Dongen
ACE Academy- Art, Architecture, Construction and Engineering
Digital literacy [where concepts of color, form, and collage are part of the everyday narrative] demands that we treat art as the next R, just as important as the traditional 3 Rs. This is one of the most pivotal shifts in literacy that the digital age has inspired,and we should not deny our students these important literacy skills. (Ohler, J., 2009, Orchestrating the Media Collage, Educational Leadership, 66(6) 8-13)
WELCOME CLASS OF 2025!
Do you have an interest in pursuing a rigorous college-prep pathway focused on math, science, art, engineering, and architectural design? If you are an incoming 9th grader and would like to join the ACE Academy, please send an email to me, Karen J. Melander at melanderk@sfusd.edu. ACE Academy is a fast-moving program for high achieving students that can be entered in any grade(dependent upon space- preference is given to existing ACE students). 32 ACE 1 students are cored in Art and Architecture and biology. They are also required to take geometry and algebra 1 concurrently. There is a summer assignment every year.
Many gifted students are bored in school. The ACE Academy (art, architecture, construction, and engineering) was created to offer motivated and/or gifted students a higher level of academic instruction in reading, writing, mathematics and the arts so that they will be able to access college level programs in architecture, engineering, and or other more selective areas of study when they graduate from ALHS. A complete education must be a vehicle to incorporate tactile, visual, analytical, cognitive, social and emotional intelligences. We hope to train students to be motivated, thoughtful and joyful learners, while also gaining the skills necessary to successfully compete for admission to selective schools such as Cal Poly SLO, the UC system and private colleges.
- Students will also be introduced to careers in art, architecture, engineering and related fields.
ACE 1 SUMMER ASSIGNMENT All ACE 1 students (incoming freshman and sophomores) are required to read three books of their choice. One of the books must be from the ALHS English dept. 9th grade reading selections (check their web page). Book reports will be submitted on the google classroom.
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WHO: Interested 9th-grade students should request to enroll in the ACE Academy. Preference is given to students who express a strong interest in architecture and engineering and who have demonstrated proficiency in math and reading in the 7th and 8th grades. Students who have a low GPA or attendance issues should apply in the 10th grade after improving their academic record in the 9th grade. As soon as you receive your acceptance notification, contact Ms. Melander to apply- Melanderk@sfusd.edu. Spaces are limited and generally fill up by June 1st for boys.
WHAT: The curriculum in Art and Architecture is a “hands-on” application of principles explored in the required concurrent classes of geometry and algebra. 9th grade ACE students will also share a biology class to give them the opportunity to form a social community for their first year in a large (2,000+), urban, comprehensive high school. We also offer an after school studio/study hall, where students meet, snack and help one another catch up on their school work. __________________________________________________________________________
ACE Academy Instructors:
Karen Melander, Architecture, Advanced Architecture, and AP Art History
Jeff Kim, Science ACE 1
Daniel Stingle, AP 3D Studio Design ACE ¾
Kathleen Lussier- West, AP 2D Studio Design ACE 3/4
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ACE ACADEMY COURSE SEQUENCING (See the VAPA Web page for course descriptions)
Recommended Classes for the ACE curriculum. Admittance to AP classes is chosen by lottery. ACE Students are guaranteed admittance to AP Art Classes.
Year One: Art and Architecture (meets UC A-G graduation requirement), algebra and geometry,( required) ACE Biology, PE, English ___________________________________________________________________________
Year Two: AP Art History (meets UC A-G graduation requirement) , chemistry and advanced algebra (or Pre Calculus), foreign Language, English, (AP) World History ___________________________________________________________________________
Year Three: AP Calculus or PreCalculus, AP Physics, AP English, Advanced Art and Architecture (meets UC A-G graduation requirement) OR AP Studio Art, ( AP) US History, foreign language
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Year Four: Advanced Art and Architecture OR AP Studio Art, AP Calculus or Calculus 2, AP English, AP Science, foreign language, (AP) Government/ Economics
Additional Classes are offered in conjunction with CCSF. Summer program: 6 weeks Intro to Engineering and CAD.
Contact
VAPA Dept. Chair:Karen J. Melander, instructor. melanderk@sfusd.edu
Enrichment Programs
The following are websites that have access to programs for College Preparation
SCHOOL YEAR PROGRAMS
MInds Matter for low income students (free or reduced lunch) applications accepted from 9th graders only with a minimum of 3.5 GPA http://www.mindsmattersf.org/
Youth Art Exchange( YAX) ( free) summer and spring paid internships and free classes during the school year. www.youthartexchange.org.
Classes in music, photo, fashion design, architecture, printmaking
ACE Mentorship (for architecture, construction and engineering)
http://www.acementor.org/index.php/affiliates/california/san-francisco-bay-area/about-us/
SUMMER ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS
Stanford Splash: https://stanfordesp.org/ Classes at Stanford taught by Stanford students- free
CSSA: California State Summer School for the Arts www.csssa.ca.gov
animation, film, video,creative writing, dance, music , theater,and visual arts
SIG Summer Institute for the Gifted (866)303.4744 http://www.giftedstudy.org/programs.asp
GIRLS WHO CODE https://girlswhocode.fluidreview.com/
Free summer immersion program for rising 11th and 12th graders
ENTERPRISE FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS http://enterpriseforyouth.org/
Workshops, internships and job shadows
University Prep (866) 303-4744, (203) 399-5421 www.nsgtuniversityprep.org
Academic Talent Development Program at Berkeley
http://camps.berkeley.edu/camps-by-activity/academics-sports/academic-talent-development-program/
COSMOS; summer programs in science, math and engineering at UC campuses
https://cosmos-ucop.ucdavis.edu/main/campus_programs
Youth Art Exchange www.youthartexchange.org (free) summer and spring paid internships and free classes during the school year
Classes in music, photo, fashion design, architecture, printmaking
Youthworks : Summer Internships in San Francisco http://sfyouthworks.org/
Build San Francisco Institute: Architectural Design http://www.afsf.org/programs/build-san-francisco-institute/
California College of the Arts: scholarships available( grades 9-12) www.cca.edu/precollege classes in the arts, architecture and industrial design, photography and creative writing
Spotlight on the Arts www.calawyersforthearts.org/Community_Developmentpaid summer internships at arts organizations( low income SF residents)
Academy of Art University https://www.academyart.edu/academics/pre-college-art-experience/
free summer scholarships for precollege arts programs
Summer Engineering Programs for High School Students
A great way to learn more about engineering paths and get some great experience that can contribute meaningfully to your college applications is to attend a summer engineering program. Here are some highly recommended programs:
Carnegie Mellon Summer Academy for Mathematics and Science
Cosmos Summer Programs (at various UC campuses)
Johns Hopkins Engineering Innovation
Lives Improve Through Engineering (LITE) at Kettering University
University of Michigan Summer Engineering Academy
Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science (MITES) at MIT
Purdue University’s STEP program
Society of Women Engineers SEE Camp at University of Michigan
Stanford Summer Engineering Academy (SSEA) for Women and Minority Students
Summer Engineering Seminar (SES) at Santa Clara University
INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE ENGINEERS
How exciting that you’ve identified engineering as a potential field of study for college! Because many colleges require that you apply to the College of Engineering when you apply for freshman admission (and at most schools it’s very difficult to move into engineering after beginning college, though it’s always easy to move out of engineering into something else), it’s important to investigate this career path thoroughly in high school to decide if it’s right for you. It’s important to look at each school’s admission requirements for engineering, as they are sometimes more rigorous than the college’s overall admissions requirements.
We suggest that you use the following resources to learn more about the various kinds of engineering (aerospace, mechanical, civil, computer, and biomedical are some of the more popular fields), what engineers do in their jobs, and what an engineering curriculum looks like in college and beyond.
Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS) Try Engineering: http://www.tryengineering.org/
Sloan Career Cornerstone: http://www.careercornerstone.org/
Cal Poly SLO’s Viewbook (click on Colleges, then Engineering to explore the different kinds of engineering): http://admissions.calpoly.edu/viewbook/#
Summer Engineering Programs for High School Students
A great way to learn more about engineering paths and get some great experience that can contribute meaningfully to your college applications is to attend a summer engineering program. Here are some highly recommended programs:
Carnegie Mellon Summer Academy for Mathematics and Science
Cosmos Summer Programs (at various UC campuses)
Johns Hopkins Engineering Innovation
Lives Improve Through Engineering (LITE) at Kettering University
University of Michigan Summer Engineering Academy
Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science (MITES) at MIT
Purdue University’s STEP program
Society of Women Engineers SEE Camp at University of Michigan
Stanford Summer Engineering Academy (SSEA) for Women and Minority Students
Summer Engineering Seminar (SES) at Santa Clara University

House Design ACE 4 Van Dongen
