_{Thumbnail photo courtesy of Del Norte Unified School District}

Though he cast a wide net, Tony Fabricius said he was surprised at how many people showed up to advocate for Sunset High School.

Hoping that his school would be singled out as a Model Continuation High School for a second time, Sunset High’s principal hosted a representative with the California Department of Education last summer.

In addition to combing through its attendance and student achievement data, the CDE rep also met with stakeholders including parents, students and business owners and other community leaders. Fabricius said he sent out 22 invites and was surprised when “something like 20 people showed up.”

“It was one after another who kept arriving for the meeting,” he told Redwood Voice Community News. “They really showed up for us. [The rep] said, ‘Usually, when I do these visits, there are maybe three or four people — we have to drag these people in.’”

The CDE rep also showed up on a Friday — also known as crazy field trip day, according to Fabricius.

“He’s not seeing my kids in a classroom. He’s seeing kids in action,” he said, adding that his students host groups of third and fifth-graders, guiding them down the interpretive trail in their second-growth redwood forest, showing them their farm and cooking with them.  “This is basically real world application [with] soft skills and presenting and public speaking and working with others — collaboration — and so he was just blown away.”

Sunset High was one of 74 continuation schools to receive recognition as a Model Continuation High School for 2025, State Superintendent of Schools Tony Thurmond announced in February. Spearheaded through the California Department of Education and the California Continuation Education Association Plus, being recognized as a model continuation high school means providing students with more than a diploma.

“The teachers and administrators aim to provide students with a student-centered approach that meets their diverse academic, social and emotional needs and opportunities to explore options beyond high school,” Thurmond said in a written statement, “preparing students for the future whether they choose to pursue further education or join the workforce.”

CCEA Plus also awarded Sunset High an Exemplary Program Award for its field trips. Fabricius said he applied for the award on the advice of the CDE rep who visited the school as part of its model continuation high school application.

According to Fabricius, the CDE rep who visited Sunset last summer also said he hadn’t seen more exemplary programs at one campus since he began conducting school visits.

“Sunset High is the only continuation high school in the State of California that has an FFA program — that’s also an example of an exemplary program,” Fabricius said, referring to Sunset’s Future Farmers of America chapter.

According to Fabricius, when he was first notified that Sunset High achieved Model Continuation High School status, he combed the list to see who else was awarded. He noted that the two closest schools to Sunset High to be recognized were in Fort Bragg and in Sutter County.

Del Norte’s geographical isolation means having to be innovative to work with limited resources, Fabricius said. Sunset achieving Model Continuation High School status is a reflection on his students as well as his staff, he said.

Fabricius pointed out that during the field trips his students host they’re equal partners with his staff. Those in the school’s FFA chapter are participating in competitions at the state level and placing in the top 10 against conventional high schools.

“If you would have asked them when they first got here, or before they got here, ‘Do you see yourself being a part of FFA and wearing a blue jacket and uniform? Or reciting poetry in front of other people or doing field trips?’ A lot of them would have said, ‘Hell, no!’” Fabricius said. “And then they come here and they’re part of something greater than themselves. That sense of purpose, that sense of belonging is something they never had before at whatever school they were at previously. It shows them what is possible and it’s a credit to our school community — staff and students.”