As students walk into the state-of-the-art Center for Advanced Research and Technology (CART), chills of excitement and dreams of one day sitting in the comfortable desk chairs flood many minds. CART, an educational program for high school juniors and seniors, has designed a high performance business atmosphere offering four clusters of study: engineering design, global dynamics, advanced communications and professional sciences.

“As CART becomes an option for campus students, new skills and higher learning opportunities will also be available to them,” Bryan Souza, video/film instructor at CART, said. “The best learning occurs by doing. CART gives students an opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills acquired on real-world projects in a classroom setting.”
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As part of CART’s multi-faceted program, different classes exist within the clusters. They include architectural design, biomedical engineering, economics & finance, communication systems, database design and computer programming, forensic research, multimedia and law to name a few.

“It [CART] fills a need in the Valley for a technical school,” Molly Sargent, English department chair, said. “Many students’ talents and abilities aren’t addressed in a regular curriculum, and this school gives them a chance to develop and become the student they wish to be.”

Next year, CART is offering enrollment to private school students in the Valley. Campus students will have the opportunity to apply to and possibly attend this nationally recognized, one-of-a-kind high school center.

“This not only adds another aspect of education to Fresno Christian,” CART Principal Steve Ward said, “but it also gives the kids a chance to meet other students from all parts of the city.”

The pre-requisites to become a student at the CART are: completion of biology, algebra I, two years of English, regular attendance and permission from high school counselor and parent or guardian. Also, students must be on track for graduation. In addition to the requirements needed for acceptance the program will cost an extra $2700 on top of campus tuition.

“The great thing about CART is the UC school system accepts all of the classes as legitimate credits,” Jon Endicott, vice-principal, said. “It is perfect for students who are career focused and want to get a head start.”

CART offers two sessions, one in the morning from 7:30-10:30 A.M and an afternoon session from 12:30-3:30 P.M.

According to www.cart.org, “CART is the most comprehensive, state-of-the-art education reform effort at the secondary level to date.” For many students this is an opportunity of a lifetime.

“CART sounds like a great learning opportunity for someone like me who is interested in computers,” Nick Ramon, ’05, said. “It would be very useful for the future; I definitely want to check it out.”

To find out more about the center for advanced research and technology (CART) check out www.cart.org or call CART at 559-248-7400. For enrollment information, contact vice-principal Jon Endicott at 299-1695 ext 126.