Downtown Magnets High School
Downtown Magnets High School (also known as DMHS, Downtown Business Magnet, or DBM) is an alternate magnet high school located in the Temple-Beaudry neighborhood near Downtown Los Angeles. The school belongs to the Downtown/MacArthur Park Community of Schools and houses three magnet programs: Business (DBM), and Electronic Information (EIM), and the International Baccalaureate (IB). The three magnets combined hold a total student population of approximately 1,000 students. History. Downtown Magnets High School was founded in 1981 as "Downtown Business Magnet" as a component of LAUSD’s expanding voluntary integration program, specializing in bushiness training . The school's first class consisted of 55 sophomores from different neighborhoods around LAUSD. When the Electronic Information Magnet was created in 1994, Downtown Business Magnet adopted the name “Downtown Magnets” to incorporate both magnets in its name. Academics. DMHS contains three magnet programs; Downtown Business Magnet (DBM), Electronic Information Magnet (EIM), and the International Baccalaureate (IB). Downtown Business Magnet (DBM). The Downtown Business Magnet (DBM) was the first magnet program to be established at Downtown Magnets, and is the largest magnet program, with approximately 45% of the school's population. The curriculum includes Accounting, Business Organization, Corporate Management, Sales , Entrepreneurship, careers, international relations, and the use of technology in business. DBM houses two academies; Finance and Fashion Design & Merchandising. Academy of Finance. The Academy of Finance (also known as the Academy of Business and Finance), is one of the Academies a part of DBM. It provides courses in entrepreneurship, accounting, corporate finance (financial planning), and international relations. The Academy of Finance has been sponsored by CIT Group, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, Cornerstone OnDemand, and Cognizant, and receives support from Los Angeles Education Partnership and the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship with workshops, mock interviews, and internship opportunities. The Academy of Finance offers  six classes: Academy of Fashion Design & Merchandising. The Academy of Fashion Design & Merchandising was established in 1992 under the name "Fashion Careers Center" to educate students on the design and fabrication of general clothing apparel. In 2014, the Fashion Careers Center was combined along with the existing Academy of Finance of DBM. It was renamed the "Academy of Fashion" in 2015, and then to "Academy of Fashion Design & Merchandising" in 2017. The Academy of Fashion Design & Merchandising has established partnerships with the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Woodbury University, L.A. Trade-Tech, and the California Market Center. The Academy  of Fashion Design & Merchandising offers four classes: Electronic Information Magnet (EIM). The Electronic Information Magnet (also known as Downtown Business Magnet (Computer Science/Engineering/Multimedia)) was established in 1994 has the second largest student population out of the three magnet programs and includes studies in Computer Science, Computer Programming and Web Design. The magnet program was developed with the Los Angeles Central Library and the UCLA Graduate School of Education in collaboration with several local business leaders and LAUSD Board Members. The program incorporates technology and STEM into students' high school educational processes. EIM holds a constant collaboration with the  Los Angeles Central Library. Both DMHS and the Central Library are used as instruction sites. In addition to the Central Library, EIM shares a partnership with Los Angeles City College (LACC). EIM houses two academies; Information Technology and Engineering. Academy of Information Technology (AOIT). The Academy of Information Technology (AOIT) The Academy of Information Technology offers six classes: Academy of Engineering (AOE). The Academy of Engineering (AOE) uses the curriculum from Project Lead the Way to help students learn engineering concepts, design, and technology to solve real world problems. The Academy of Engineering offers four classes: International Baccalaureate (IB). The  International Baccalaureate (IB) program was introduced to DMHS in 2014. Since the 2014-15 academic year, Downtown Magnets has offered the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program. Eleven subjects are offered: Courses. Downtown Magnets offers a variety of classes, Advanced Placement (AP) courses, and Honors courses. All areas of academic classes are offered at DMHS: Grings College Center. The Grings College Center was established as simply the "College Center" to assist students for college by helping with applications, financial aid, and scholarships. In 2005, the College Center was renamed to "Grings College Center" to honor Carol Grings, a college counselor who also  served as a math teacher, and coordinator for DMHS from 1982 up until 2005, when she died from cancer. Demographics. For the 2019-2020 school year, DMHS had an enrollment of 1056 students, broken down into 25% freshmen, 27.3% sophomores, 25.4% juniors, and 22.3% seniors. 71.2% of students had English as their second language. 2% were English learners. Academic Performance Index (API). The Academic Performance Index (API) measures the academic progress of schools across the state of California. Since the 2007-2008 school year, Downtown Magnets has placed number one in Local District 4 thanks to the continual growth of  its API. Its scores are as follows: