Founded in 1963, Palo Alto Chinese School (PACS) is located in
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.
The city was es ...
and is the oldest
Chinese school in the
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...
. The school was formed with a merger between a
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...
school and a
Mandarin school. The history of the Cantonese school could be traced back to 1960, when the Santa Clara Overseas Chinese School was founded.
School hours are 7:00PM - 9:00PM on Friday nights at
Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School, 480 E. Meadow Dr, Palo Alto, from late August to early June. Annual tuition is $320 (new student and late register are $340).
Mandarin Classes are from K thru 12th grades and ages from 5-18 years old. In higher grades, classes provide instruction in conversation, writing and culture. Cantonese classes are C1-C9 grades and ages from 5-18 years old.
Cantonese classes are in 4 levels, roughly C1-2, C3-5, C6-8 and C9+ grades. Presently, in C3-4, Cantonese is taught in both Cantonese and English; in C8-9, both Cantonese and Pinyin Chinese are being taught. Cantonese classes are smaller; the curriculum and textbooks are designed to customize to the existing students. New students will be evaluated to the appropriate class levels.
Palo Alto Chinese School is a member of th
Association of Northern California Chinese Schools (ANCCS)
See also
*
History of the Chinese Americans in San Francisco
As of 2012, 21.4% of the population in San Francisco was of Chinese descent, and there were at least 150,000 Chinese American residents. The Chinese are the largest Asian American subgroup in San Francisco.Fagan, Kevin.Asian population swells in B ...
References
External links
Palo Alto Chinese School (PACS)
Chinese-American culture in California
Private schools in California
Educational institutions established in 1963
Schools in Santa Clara County, California
1963 establishments in California
Buildings and structures in Palo Alto, California
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