Helix Charter High School Enrollment Lottery Night

Your child may be able to attend Helix Charter High School, even though it is not your home school. Legislation has provided the opportunity for more choice in what schools students attend, and our school is open to any California student in grades 9 – 12. Once you get to know us, you may find Helix a match for your student.

When you step on our campus, you immediately sense the tradition, the pride, and the excellence that has been the norm at Helix for almost 60 years. It is this continued sense of excellence that pushes us to evolve to meet the needs of students and why we chose to become a charter high school. 

Helix High School was the first public high school in the state to convert to a comprehensive charter high school.  While we retained the identity of Helix in areas such as our mascot and serving all students, we made a commitment to do things differently in regards to instruction. Helix Charter High School’s mission is to ensure that all students have the choice to attend college after graduation. Students who graduate from Helix will have met the requirements for admission to the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems.  We also ensure that students develop a skill while at Helix, as we offer many electives in areas such as the medical field, animation, business, culinary arts and more. Students complete a rigorous curriculum that mixes academic courses and electives so that students complete a major in high school, much like they would in college.

We know each and every one of our students can meet these high standards and are committed to supporting them. To better meet the needs of students, we are on the quarter system - students take fewer classes at a time, similar to a college model. Each student is followed by a Grade Level Team, consisting of a Grade Level Principal, counselor, secretary and academic advisor to provide a greater sense of family and connection to the school. And finally, all students have access to tutorials during the school day, after school and during Saturday programs. Helix employs 60 college-going or college graduate tutors who work in conjunction with our professional and dedicated teaching staff.

We have much evidence that our innovation has proven to help students achieve.  We earned the California Distinguished Schools Award for the second time in 2009. Helix was named as one of the top 505 schools in the nation in 2008 by US News and World Report and we far exceed the state wide average of students graduating high school.  Our success is not just limited to the classroom, however. We field highly competitive sports teams and have award-winning performing arts programs.  We have a myriad of clubs and after-school programs based on student interest and are always adding more as student interests dictate. 

 For more information and to help with the decision on such an important choice, we will be holding informational meetings on Wednesday, April 27 and Thursday, April 28 at 6:00 pm in the Helix gym.  In order to be considered for enrollment at Helix, it is mandatory that you attend of these meetings. If your student is already enrolled or is zoned for Helix, you need not attend this meeting, and no further action is necessary. If you have questions, please call (619) 644 – 1940, ext. 152. We look forward to having you get to know us.