Bismarck Public Schools outlines plan to expand career and technical education into middle schools

Bismarck Public Schools officials presented a plan Feb. 24 to expand career and technical education (CTE) into the district's middle schools, describing a K–12 progression of awareness, exploration and occupational intent designed to better connect students to local workforce needs.

Under the plan, CTE staff would provide required and elective exploratory experiences beginning in sixth grade and increase in depth through eighth grade so students enter high school with clearer course pathways and career interests. Pat Phillips, identified in the meeting as the district's CTE director, told the board that CTE enrollment at the district's Career Academy and Tech Center has grown an average of about 11% per year over the last 15 years and that two-thirds of BPS graduates are already considered “choice ready.”

District presenters said the middle-school phase would not track students into fixed career paths. Instead, it would give all middle-school students multiple short and full-day hands-on experiences across career clusters so they can better match interests and aptitudes with future course choices and postsecondary options. Dr. Ravenberg and Dr. Johnson (district staff presenters) described a model in which sixth graders get introductory exposures, seventh graders explore clusters more specifically, and eighth graders complete three-month deep dives in different pathways before making high school course selections.

Board members and staff explained why the district is pursuing the work now. Presenters cited local and state data showing CTE concentrators improve graduation rates across demographic groups and argued that meaningful, career-focused learning increases student engagement and academic success. The district also described physical sites and partnerships already in use or planned: the Career Academy on the BSC campus, the Hughes facility (repurposed for health-sciences style learning), and a new Silver Ranch Career Academy expansion that will house additional trades and precision-agriculture programming. District presenters said a regional partnership (Central Region Area Career and Technical Center) and private partners such as Sanford have supported earlier work; Sanford also provided a donation tied to a prior $1.1 million grant the district pursued.

Presenters outlined logistics for the middle-school model: teams of students would travel by bus for half-day or full-day exploratory sessions at a central site (Hughes was offered as one example), with no change to official start/end times at students’ home schools. In an ideal monthly rotation, the district estimated it would be able to bring teams from its three middle schools through the center on an 18‑day cycle to serve all teams. Staff gave concrete classroom examples: a sixth-grade engineering experience that starts with bridge-building and a later grade that uses CAD and 3D printing; health-science students who learn CPR early and more advanced clinical skills by eighth grade; and media/communications projects that progress from short video stories to live student news production.

Board members asked about timeline, staffing and teacher licensure. District leaders said a light-phase rollout could begin as soon as next school year at Hughes, with full buildout taking several years and dependent on funding and community partnerships. Pat Phillips noted middle-school staffing has fewer licensure constraints than secondary CTE courses and that the district intends to recruit strong middle-level educators and leverage community and industry partners as experts-in-residence where appropriate. Staff also described curricular integration: data from hands-on labs (for example, planned hydroponics equipment) could feed back into math and science instruction at students' home schools and advisory/reflection periods would be used to reinforce career-ready practices.

Board members repeatedly framed the expansion in workforce terms, saying businesses often consider local training pipelines when siting operations. Several board members praised the program's growth and urged continued community partnership. Presenters asked the board to treat the presentation as informational and not an immediate action item; they also asked for support in pursuing funding and private partnerships to accelerate buildout.

If implemented, district leaders said the effort would aim to: increase middle-school career exposure, improve students' course choices entering high school, and strengthen alignment between district coursework and local workforce needs. No formal board action was taken on the proposal; staff described the plan as a phased strategy subject to further planning, funding and partnership commitments.