On Jan. 9, Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech) held its annual Programs and Electives Faire, offering a chance for students to learn about the different programs and electives offered on campus.

Held in the quad during the Foothill Intervention, Reinforcement, and Enrichment (FIRE) period, the Programs and Electives Faire features representatives from the major elective programs at Foothill Tech, as well as other on-campus opportunities such as Wellness Peers.

“I think that a lot of students don’t really know all of the program[s]. Like, obviously Bioscience and DTech are very popular, but we also have tables like Journalism, Wellness Peers, Film that … open up what all the students can do because some students feel like there’s not enough opportunities at Foothill seeing that we’re smaller … it kind of brings to light what opportunities we do have,” Henry Escobar ‘27, the Wellness Peer representative, said.

Along with the established programs, some new choices debuted at the Faire, offering different pathways for students. One such program is Dragon TV, an effort spearheaded by English and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) teacher Elizabeth McGraw.

“We’re basically just going to be making a video version of what Mr. Davis says to give updates about what’s coming up … just updates and kind of bragging about how awesome everyone is. It’s going to be really fun, and it is during FIRE. You do get a cord at graduation and community service for participating, which is really great because it is helping the school community,” McGraw said.

Offering different insights into the program experience, student program participants staffed booths alongside instructors.

“It’s really important to be able to hear from other students a firsthand account of what you’re getting into, and I believe that’s really good for certain programs that are just different for every teacher,” Lua Rodriguez ‘27, the Film representative, said.

While some students joined the Programs and Electives Faire as representatives, others attended as potential applicants, exploring the possibilities shown in recruitment videos released before the event.

“I’m excited to learn about Bioscience and DTech and Journalism … I’ve seen DTech’s recruitment video, which is really fun to see, and then Bioscience was really, really exciting because you could feel the energy … it really promotes what the programs are trying to say and like gets the students to get into it more,” Zane Armstrong ‘29 said.

As the Programs and Electives Faire drew to a close, attendees and representatives alike prepared for the next events in the recruitment process. Open House Day and the Information and Application Workshops mark the next opportunities for students to learn more about the programs on campus at Foothill Tech.