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Elkhorn district to modify academic-and-career plan after middle-school schedule change
Summary
District staff told the Elkhorn Area School District Board that schedule changes following a referendum reduced some sixth-graders' elective access and that the annual Academic and Career Plan will be revised so all students retain access to career-exploration courses.
Elkhorn Area School District staff told the school board that the district will modify its annual Academic and Career Plan after a middle-school schedule change reduced access to some electives for sixth graders.
The plan, presented as part of the district's annual certification, outlines career-education activities from kindergarten through high school and includes robotics, agricultural science, business, information technology and other elective pathways. A staff presenter said an adjustment "needs to be made at this point because not all sixth graders have access to the same course electives that they had previously." The presenter added that those conflicts are most likely when students take band or choir during the same year as some electives.
The district emphasized why the revision matters: the plan is designed to expose students early to career pathways and to link school coursework to regional employers. The presenter said the plan was developed by counselors, administrators, CTE teachers and business partners across the county, and cited partnerships such as Milwaukee 7 to expand regional work-study and employment opportunities.
Sarah Bosch, a staff member, told the board, "we did make adjustments to the schedule to ensure that all students have access to that academic and career planning regardless of their schedules." The board and staff discussed modifying the written plan so it reflects the current middle-school elective structure.
Officials described curriculum elements already embedded in classrooms: Project Lead The Way courses and other project-based learning that give students exposure to STEM and technical skills even if they are not enrolled in a specific elective. The presenter said the district also operates a Career and College Academy charter program and an online options program that serve large numbers of students at lower per-pupil operating costs; those programs' revenues, the presenter said, help subsidize traditional school operations.
Discussion by board members and staff focused on ensuring that the revised plan documents which grade levels and course offerings are available given the five-hour school day adopted in a prior referendum and on preserving equitable access for students participating in music or other yearlong activities.
The immediate direction from the meeting was to update the Academic and Career Plan language to reflect the current middle-school schedule and to confirm course access for sixth graders; no ordinance or formal adoption of a revised plan was recorded in the transcript.
Less-critical details: staff noted that the district assigns high-school counselors by students' last names and that the district had shifted a ninth-grade counselor assignment to provide earlier access to career planning. There was no formal vote recorded on the plan itself during the items in the transcript.
