At Palo Alto Middle College High School, located on the Foothill College campus, students blend high school classes with college coursework, trading traditional pressures for a path that emphasizes personal growth, passion and purpose.
In a school district known for its academic pressure, a shift to a smaller, more flexible high school gave some Palo Alto students room to breathe — and space to rediscover a love for learning. PAMC Principal Emily Garrison said the campus gives students a different learning environment.
“The entire purpose behind a middle college is it is a high school for students who are performing below their academic potential in a traditional high school environment,” Garrison said.
PAMC students split their day between three high school classes of their choice — English, U.S. History, Algebra 2, Positive Psychology or Living Skills — and up to three college courses per quarter.
According to Palo Alto High School sophomore Nicole Lu, improving her learning experience was a reason for considering attending PAMC.
“Smaller student‑to‑teacher ratios, a flexible schedule and exposure to college life were all things I felt would help me learn better,” Lu said.
Gunn High School sophomore Mathilde Huynh, who plans to transfer to PAMC in the fall, said she chose her program for a variety of reasons, one being a healthier learning environment.
“I’m going to Middle College because I want a little bit less stress and to be focused more on my learning and passions than my actual grades,” Huynh said.
Junior Leo Lim, who transferred to PAMC from Paly last semester, said one of its biggest advantages is the program’s flexibility, independence and variety of classes.
“Middle College is essentially a mix of high school and college at the same time,” Lim said. “There’s a lot of choice, and since the college classes run on the quarter system, everything’s fast-paced and more flexible.”
According to PAMC junior Avigail Harsat, the pressure from PAMC is more about personal academic goals rather than peer competition.
“The stress I experience here [PAMC] is the healthier kind that motivates academic focus, rather than competition with peers or pressure due to the school standard,” Harsat said.
According to PAMC sophomore Lily-Rose Cheung, another choosing factor for her was the smaller community and stronger teacher connections.
“The four teachers that came from PAUSD are all really great,” Cheung said. “Each of them chose to transfer to Middle College, so that means that they really wanted to be here. They’re very kind and generous, and they try to understand each student on a personal level.”
Lim said classes at PAMC tend to be small, with cohorts of nine to 20 students in a classroom. Because of this, teachers can understand students’ needs better.
“The teachers’ care is more obvious since there are only a few classes of students,” Lim said.
While many students, including Hyunh, said academic freedom as a reason for transferring, some students, like Harsat, were drawn by the chance to move on from their old high schools.
“I chose Middle College because I was not willing to go back to Paly after my sophomore year experience,” Harsat said. “I didn’t know much about the school [PAMC], but I had a close friend who was admitted, so I thought it would be fun to join her. It also sounded more niche in terms of learning and environment, and that was much more appealing than transferring to Gunn.”
According to PAMC Principal Emily Garrison, Middle College offers a strong transfer pathway into universtiy.
“Going to community college has a lot of really amazing benefits, including the ability to transfer to a CSU or a UC school with a much higher acceptance rate than if you’re trying to transfer as a freshman,” Garrison said.
Lim said this transfer process was an important part of his decision to go to PAMC.
“I transferred to Middle College because I would be able to start taking college classes, and there are very good transfer programs to schools like UCLA and most other UCs,” Lim said.
Still, the program isn’t without its trade-offs. Since PAMC is located at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills, Cheung said that the commute can be long compared to her previous high school.
“Paly was definitely easier to get to,” Cheung said. “I can bike to Paly in about 30 minutes from my house, but because Middle College is in Los Altos Hills, the commute can take up to 2 hours. That’s a lot of time wasted.”
According to PAMC sophomore Mia Kubursi, she misses aspects of their former high schools’ social life and events, like Homecoming, Prom and Spirit Week.
“I preferred Gunn’s spirit weeks and big events; PAMC’s are more casual,” Kubursi said.
Garrison said there are compromises when it comes to spirited events.
“Even if we do more spirit stuff, it will never be that way, because we’re trying to create something a little bit different,” Garrison said. “Those are the kind of things that we can’t really build here.”
Considering this, some students, like Lim, said it’s important to be informed before deciding to move to PAMC.
“Make sure to do your research on what type of college classes you want to take, and make sure to reach out to other Middle College students for questions,” Lim said.
According to Garrison, PAMC is about the journey of learning.
“The slogan has really come to existence through our school this year, and that is enjoy the journey of learning,” Garrison said. “Slow down, enjoy it, find your passion, get involved in things that you care about and be focused on the here and now.”
