BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
Foothill College will offer an advanced math class that parents and students have been fighting for at the Palo Alto Unified School District, Principal Brent Kline announced yesterday.
Multivariable Calculus will be offered on Palo Alto High School’s campus during the traditional school day starting in the fall, Kline said.
“We recognize this is an exciting opportunity for our students to accelerate their math learning,” Kline said in an update to students yesterday.
Kline asked students to fill out a form if they’re interested in Multivariable Calculus and said seniors will get priority if the class fills up.
Principal Wendy Stratton confirmed yesterday that Gunn High School will have the same offering.
The debate over Multivariable Calculus has been long and contentious, pitting advanced math advocates against those who are worried about adding pressure on students.
It’s an issue in the upcoming school board race. Candidates Avery Wang and John Craig have pushed for the course while Linda Henigin has said general education classrooms should be the “default placement” for all students.
The controversy goes back to March 2023 when former Superintendent Don Austin said a teacher credentialing issue forced the district to stop offering Multivariable Calculus on campus during the school day.
Parents and students accused Austin of punishing high-achieving students and have been trying to get the course back ever since.
Paly teacher Daniel Nguyen received a master’s degree in math so he could teach Multivariable Calculus, and then he wrote a proposal to follow AP Calculus in the course catalog, starting in the fall.
But the course was opposed by councils of assistant principals, instructional leads and teachers that set the priorities at each high school.
“It risks amplifying the already significant pressures on students to do more, faster, at the expense of balance and wellness,” the Paly Education Council wrote in an Oct. 3 letter to the school board.
The board voted unanimously on Dec. 16 to approve Nguyen’s course, but the councils had the final say.
Nguyen was skeptical that Foothill College would have an instructor to teach Multivariable Calculus during the high school bell schedule. But he was positive about yesterday’s announcement.
“Nothing’s official yet, but I’m heartened by the prospect that our students will finally be able to take these classes during the school day,” Nguyen said in a text message.
De Anza College will continue offering the course in evenings on Zoom and at Palo Alto High School, Kline said.
Board members Rowena Chiu and Alison Kamhi wanted to direct the school to offer the course at a meeting on March 17.
“I firmly believe that students who wish to accelerate should be given the opportunity without constraint,” Chiu said.
Board members Shounak Dharap, Shana Segal and Josh Salcman were worried that overruling educators would set a bad precedent and go against a policy that allows the councils to decide whether to offer a course.
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