G: Academic Elective

20th Century Pop Culture (year long elective option available to 9th-12th graders): 

This course explores the development of popular culture throughout the 20th century and its ongoing impact on society today. We will examine the historical roots of pop culture, the technological innovations that enabled mass media, and the ways in which popular culture has both reflected and shaped American life.

Through the study of cultural artifacts (including songs, dances, movies, television, slang, fashion, advertisements, comic books, and video games) students will gain a deeper understanding of how people engage with pop culture and how it influences identity, values, and social change.

AP Human Geography (year long elective option available to 10th-12th graders): 

AP Human Geography is an introductory college-level human geography course. Students cultivate their understanding of human geography through data and geographic analyses as they explore topics like patterns and spatial organization, human impacts and interactions with their environment, and spatial processes and societal changes.*

*Course description provided by The College Board

Art History (year long elective option available to 9th-12th graders): 

Art illuminates our world, bringing beauty and meaning into our lives. Our goal in this class is to refine our vision and amplify our ability to truly appreciate and understand art, in order to recognize an artist’s message, despite any barriers created by distance in time, place or cultural differences.Art History at OSA is an exploration of various art periods, cultures, and forms of expression, beginning with cave paintings from the Paleolithic Era and ending in modern day art forms and movements, including Hip Hop and Street Art murals. This course spans across various times and places--such as Greece, Mesoamerica, and Southern Asia--and gives students a chance to explore how the art of those regions and eras can help us better understand our own lives.

Art forms considered in this class will broad: visual, musical, performance, theatrical, fashion, architectural, literary, film, and dance, reflective of the arts emphasis areas offered here at OSA. The course will be organized thematically as it is impossible to teach about the history of every art chronologically in one school year. What this means is that we might jump around to different time periods and different art disciplines throughout the year. What will connect the art we study is that in each unit the chosen artworks will relate to an exploration of a specific philosophical question that will guide our thinking. Studying art in this fashion will help you develop your ability to critically analyze artist’s choices while make connections to both the past and present in ways you might not have been able to reach otherwise. This class is also designed to enrich your art practice, so you are encouraged to bridge what you learn here with your creative process.

Business of the Arts (one semester- required for 9th graders): 

Is a semester long course designed to provide students with access to industry preparation specific to careers in the arts.  With a focus on the essential skills that will promote success in a range of creative industries, students will gain experience and knowledge in entrepreneurship, networking, portfolio preparation, licensing, and more. 

Computer Science  (year-long science option for 9th-12th graders. This can count towards the 3 year UC recommendation of a lab science as long as the student has also passed biology and another lab science like chemistry or physics):

This class is a year-long, entry-level course covering programming, algorithms, the internet, big data, digital privacy, and societal impacts, designed to foster creative, collaborative problem-solving without requiring prior coding experience.

*Course description provided by The College Board

*Students must have passed Algebra I before taking this course

AP Computer Science  (year-long science option for 11th-12th graders. This can count towards the 3 year UC recommendation of a lab science as long as the student has also passed biology and another lab science like chemistry or physics):

AP Computer Science covers the same topics as Computer Science Principles but will be more rigorous. In preparation for the AP exam at the end of the year, students will additionally independently develop an app and demonstrate their understanding of their constructed code in addition to the major concepts covered throughout the course. 

Note: Students that took Computer Science already cannot take the AP course. 

*Students must have passed Algebra I before taking this course

**By registering for this course, you are committing to taking the AP exam at the end of the school year and paying all fees associated with the test. The test fee for 2025 was $110 and $40 to cancel.

Health/Navigating Life (one semester- required for 9th graders): 

Health and life skills is a one semester class that is required of all 9th graders.  Topics include organization, self reflection and self advocacy and a standards based health curriculum.  Health units will include: Mental and physical health, substance use and abuse and sexual health with an emphasis on healthy relationships.  There will be a focus on wellness, self care  community, and resources.  Students will investigate how power dynamics, privilege and inequity affect the topics we cover. This investigation will empower students to make choices that challenge these systemic issues. Health will be taken in conjunction with business of the arts. 

Honors Ethnic Studies (year long elective option for 11th-12th graders):

This course will dive deeper into themes introduced in Ethnic Studies 9, with a focus on previewing college level Ethnic Studies material to prepare high school seniors for the rigor and content of a college course. The course will be anchored in college-level texts and cover the following units/topics: Land & Identity, Immigration, Gender & Colonization, Race & Whiteness, Prison Systems, and Resistance, Abolition & Liberation. We will unpack these topics by answering the following guiding questions:  How do different aspects of our identity (race, class, gender, family, (im)migration) impact our experiences? How do levels and types of oppression define who is considered a member in the United States, and how can we work towards dismantling those systems to liberate our communities? Honors Ethnic Studies will be a more demanding, independent and contemporary social studies course for 11th and 12th grade students who wish to challenge themselves further in their humanities skills of reading, writing and discussion. Important: Some content within the course is triggering, therefore, it is necessary that students review the topics and discuss with their families prior to signing up. A guardian must approve your enrollment for the course via waiver. 

Mock Trial/Debate (year long elective option for 10th-12th graders):

This year long course teaches about the judicial system and how a trial actually works. The years starts off with an overview of our country's judicial branch and how it functions. Around October the class is assigned a “case” that students study in order to prepare to compete against other schools’ teams.  Students act as lawyers, witnesses, and other court room players. They make a case on why their client should be found guilty or not. This course includes independent and group work and encourages students to have the best presentation of their case. After the trial competition is over, the class switches to debates. Students pick topics and have a wide range of debates against their classmates. This class is great for students who have an interest in the judicial system and want to do fun competitions. The only requirement is that students have a desire to be and participate in class, and participate in the competitions.