Elective Program

Elective Program

The Dana Middle elective program allows students to expand their talents and explore new interests!

Follow this link to explore the variety of electives available at Dana.

Follow this link to view an Elective Program informational video created by students.

Elective FAQ's

Q: Do all students receive an elective?
A: Yes. All students are scheduled for one elective for the entire year. Students can select a different elective their second year at Dana.

Q: How do students select an elective?
A: Students and parents have the opportunity to request electives during November/December when completing the Matriculation Card. Students are asked to rank their top five elective choices. This information is used when scheduling students for classes for the following year.

Q: I reviewed the Matriculation Card and saw an elective I was interested in. Can I assume it will be offered next year?
A: Elective classes with limited interest may not be offered. We will not offer the class if we do not have enough requests. If this should occur, we will automatically attempt to place the child in their second choice.

Q: Why didn't my student receive their top elective choice?
A: Our goal is to provide every student with one of their top three elective choices. Unfortunately we cannot make this happen 100% of the time. There are a variety of reasons why:

  • Class size - Your child may have selected a popular elective with a limited number of seats.
  • Schedule conflict - Your child may need to be placed in certain type of math/language arts class because of test scores or GATE status. If the elective is only offered one period in the day and this conflicts with the appropriate math/language arts class, we will give priority to the core class.
  • Course prerequisites - some elective courses require a prerequisite. For example, all students in Advanced Band must take Beginning Band first.

We do the best we can to meet the needs of all students. We have a process for collecting requests for schedule changes due to elective assignments. Please contact your counselor for more information.

IMPORTANT: Requests to have or not have specific teachers will not be taken or considered. All teachers, counselors, and administrators are in agreement of the following policy. The only exception to the above policy would be a student (not a sibling or friend) who has personally had a negative experience with the teacher the previous year and is requesting to not have that specific teacher again.

Q: What is VAPA?
A: The Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) Department includes music, theatre and visual arts. Visit the SDUSD VAPA Department website for more information.

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