Walnut Creek High School Celebrates First Graduating Class

Graduates in the inaugural class of the Contra Costa School of the Performing Arts were prepared for college at more than twice the average of their peers within Mount Diablo Unified School District.

In California, high school graduates are considered college ready if they have completed a collection of courses as designated by the University of California and California State College System. In Mount Diablo Unified, only 40 percent of high school graduates meets this requirement. At Contra Costa School of the Performing Arts (SPA), over 80 percent of students graduated meeting these requirements.

“We started SPA to provide a missing opportunity--a chance for students to focus on the arts while also being challenged through rigorous academics,” said Executive Director Neil McChesney. “With our first class, we celebrate the realization of this vision.”

Anthony Michel, SPA’s first valedictorian, is headed to the University of California, Merced in the fall. Inspired by the work he did in advanced placement government in his senior year, he is pursuing a political science major.

Alina de la Rea is on her way to St. Mary’s College in the fall. De la Rea will major in nursing and minor in dance as she continues to pursue the integration of academic and arts study in this next chapter.

Opened in 2016, Contra Costa School of the Performing Arts is a public school serving students in grades 6 through 12. It offers a college prep curriculum alongside a conservatory level training in one of five arts majors: dance, theatre, vocal, instrumental, and production & design.

To learn more about the Contra Costa School of the Performing Arts, please visit https://www.cocospa.org/.