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RATA HIGH SCHOOL
HOME OF THE EAGLES
About Our School
The mission of Rata School is to improve the quality of life experiences for all of our students. A functional skills curriculum aligned to the subset of the California Content Standards is our focus. Individualized adaptations are developed and employed to provide students with maximum opportunities for their fullest participation in the acquisition of communication, social skills, motor skills and functional academics. The traditional classroom is extended to the surrounding community. In this natural environment frequented by non-handicapped peers, students practice critical functional skills in community, recreation/leisure, vocational and basic life skills.
Mrs. Rata's first teaching experiences were in elementary grades in Newman, California. Following her marriage she resigned from Newman to raise her family. She returned to teaching in 1952 for Fresno Unified School District.In 1954, Mrs. Rata taught the educable mentally retarded at the secondary level. She realized, at that time, there was a great need for a practical work training program for her students. She developed and directed a pilot study in 1958 called "Work Training Experience for Retarded Children" which involved both classrooom instruction and community participation. She continued her service to the handicapped in her position as Coordinator of Work Training for the Fresno Unified School District. She was honored with "Teacher of the Year" awards by the California Council for Exceptional Children and the Valley Forge Freedom Foundation. An Open House and Dedication of Florence E. Rata School was held on Wednesday, January 24, 1973. Misson Statement Our mission is to provide an educational program with high expectations for all to learn the academic, social, and emotional skills needed to become lifelong learners.
Our Vision It is the vision of Rata to provide a learning environment that inspires in our students and families the passion and the power to make positive life choices by becoming architects of their future.
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Rata High School |
Rata High School is named after Florence E. Rata, a special education teacher who lived and worked in Fresno for many years. She received her B.A. degree from University of California Berkeley in the field of Economics, her teaching credential from California State University, San Francisco and her Masters Degree from California State University, Fresno. Her graduate studies included psychology, the education of exceptional children and research in teaching the mentally gifted.