The Long Beach community gathered for the Long Beach Public Schools Board of Education meeting on Nov. 12. During the meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Dr. Paul Romanelli highlighted three unique Long Beach High School programs for the community and board. These included the school’s television production, automotive technology and science research courses. 

“I have had the pleasure to visit these programs, meet the students and speak to the teachers,” said Dr. Romanelli. “There’s a lot of passion for these programs and students are highly engaged.” 

He provided an overview of the valuable skills students are learning in the television program which consists of four courses. Students learn the fundamental basics of filmmaking in Television Production 1 and continue until they reach the more advanced material in Television Studio Production 4. To get a clear picture of what happens in the studio, Dr. Romanelli presented the new Morning Wave introduction. The Morning Wave is Long Beach High School’s morning broadcast which spotlights school news and events. 

Colby Lewis, a current Long Beach High School student in Television Studio Production 4, spoke about how the studio runs on a daily basis and his personal experience in the program. 

“To have this opportunity is fantastic,” said Lewis. “A lot of schools have nothing even close to this. The reason I knew about this class is because my brother took it when he was in high school and now he has an internship at CBS. He said this really prepared him for that.” 

Following Lewis’ remarks, Dr. Romanelli highlighted the school’s automotive program consisting of Automotive Fundamentals, Automotive Systems, and Automotive Mechanics. Each hands-on course is designed to educate students on car operations and automotive technologies with automotive mechanics being the most advanced level. This course helps prepare students who are interested in a career in the automotive field and puts them in a realistic working environment.

Dr. Romanelli also spotlighted the science research program. The four-year program allows students to perform authentic science research during their high school careers. They brainstorm a research topic, read scientific literature, create hypotheses, perform experiments and more. Students work with outside organizations to enhance their research in the program and prepare themselves for science related competitions. 

During the presentations, Dr. Romanelli shared the impressive accolades of Long Beach High School graduates. From film festivals to research awards, students have made their mark. Dr. Romanelli reported that all three programs give high school students future ready skills that can help set them up for success.