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Board hears several Career & Technical Education additions including medical-assisting pathway and new construction-linked courses
Summary
District staff presented a package of CTE and academic course additions, including construction-linked applied math and English, a sports-officiating certification pathway, and a proposed medical-assisting pathway that could lead to industry certification.
District curriculum and CTE staff presented a bundle of new course requests and program expansions at the Middleton Board of Trustees meeting.
Mr. Hollinger (district administrator) described two CTE-aligned academic courses — applied mathematics for CTE and technical and professional English for CTE — that would be integrated into the construction pathway at the district's career campus. He said students assigned to the construction campus would spend a block of the morning there and earn credits that cover construction skills along with math and English coursework.
Staff also proposed a sports-officiating pathway that would prepare students to become officials for football, soccer, volleyball, basketball, baseball and softball and would include required safety training such as concussion and cardiac-arrest courses. Board members asked whether certificates earned could be used to staff middle-school games; staff said yes and noted recreation departments have lower age limits.
Other course additions included a second, more advanced yearbook class to expand opportunities for editor-level students; an expanded Art 1 to offer more media and studio time; and a one-year honors world history course proposed as a dual-credit option that would replace the current one-semester freshman world history class.
Separately, Chris Thiel, assistant (presenter), described a proposed medical-assisting career pathway the district has applied for with the state. Thiel said the planned sequence includes foundational health-professions coursework already offered, plus a proposed semester of internal medical assisting and a capstone medical-assisting course. The district researched a curriculum by the National Healthcare Association that includes the testing pathway for certification and modules that can provide continuing-education hours. Thiel said students could stack certifications (for example, medical assistant plus EKG or phlebotomy) and could test within 12 months of graduation; staff said they will pursue dual-credit agreements with local colleges where appropriate.
In motions later in the meeting the board approved the list of new course requests “as presented.” Staff said the curriculum committee has vetted materials and will bring a recommendation on textbook and curriculum choices back to the board after one more committee meeting.
