Ballston Spa proposes new senior electives, literacy lab and AP, science sequencing changes at high school

Ballston Spa High School administrators presented proposed changes to next year’s course catalog and programming at the Ballston Spa Central School District Board of Education meeting on Jan. 22, 2025. Principal Robinson said the changes are student‑driven and designed to increase access to targeted instruction and Advanced Placement options.

The proposals include new senior electives, a two‑year pilot literacy lab aimed at freshmen who score low on multiple measures, additions and substitutions in Advanced Placement courses, a revision to the accelerated science sequence that shifts biology into eighth grade, a new introductory video‑production course, and refinements to the physical‑education strand model.

Administrators said the changes respond to student survey results and curriculum‑alignment concerns. “We survey the 10th‑ and 11th‑grade students and saw what they would like to take, and we used that to form our courses,” Principal Robinson said. He described new senior electives drawn from that feedback: Practical English (a half‑year course intended to serve as an English 12/English 101–style co‑taught section), Film as Literature, Horror Genre Study, Exploring Banned Books and Exploring True Crime. He said existing senior electives with low selection rates—listed in his presentation as Bestsellers, Multicultural Literature, Today’s Issues, Fiction and Nonfiction and the full‑year English 12—would be removed or converted, while popular courses such as Sports Literature, Short Stories (co‑taught) and Public Speaking would be retained.

On targeted literacy support, Robinson and Annette O'Connor, identified in the meeting as the district literacy teacher, described a two‑year pilot literacy lab beginning with incoming freshmen. The pilot will place students in the lab based on a “multiple measure index,” using DIBELS, i‑Ready and other local and state assessments; teachers may recommend students but selection is intended to be data‑driven. “The course will look to service students that are struggling in their reading and writing skills,” Robinson said. O'Connor was named as the staff member who would lead the lab. Administrators estimated an initial capacity of roughly 30 students in year one while stressing the program would be fluid—students could enter or exit the lab by quarter or be assigned for short periods to address specific needs.

Administrators proposed changes to the social‑studies/AP sequence: replacing AP Modern/World (noted in the presentation as a large, unaligned curriculum) with AP European History because AP Euro aligns more closely with New York State Global 10 standards and with local college credit (CHS) pathways. The district would eliminate the two‑semester “AP World History 1” preparatory course and restore an AP Boot Camp over the summer to prepare ninth graders for AP Geography and the AP sequence. The district will also add AP Psychology, which administrators described as an on‑ramp AP option for grades 10–12.

Science sequencing for accelerated students would be adjusted so accelerated students take biology in eighth grade and Earth Science in ninth grade, a flip of the current sequence. Administrators said the eighth‑grade standards are biology‑based and that the change better aligns grade‑level standards with accelerated progression, allowing students to access higher‑level science electives earlier in high school.

Technology and physical‑education adjustments include a new Intro to Video Production course designed to teach foundational camera and production skills so students arriving in the school broadcast/production class (Scottie’s Rundown) have basic experience. The board heard that the PE strand model (team sports, fitness, lifetime activities) would continue but that strand selection timing would shift to course selection windows to better match student demand and allow scheduling by enrollment numbers.

Board members asked about selection criteria and capacity for the literacy lab and whether teacher recommendations would factor into selection. “We want to use data driven for that. So teachers can recommend, but that’s a piece of it,” Robinson said, naming DIBELS and i‑Ready among the assessments that will be used. Robinson added that the lab is intended to be fluid and that the long‑term goal is a 9–12 program if the pilot succeeds.

Several board members praised the student‑survey approach and emphasized tracking outcomes, including whether early interventions reduce later attendance and graduation problems. Principal Robinson said the district will monitor the pilot and other changes during implementation and adjust if needed.

The proposals described at the meeting are recommendations; formal adoption of course catalogs and schedules will follow the district’s usual curriculum approval and scheduling process and depend on student course selections during the registration window.

The presentation and subsequent questions took place during the superintendent’s report portion of the Jan. 22 open meeting. The board did not take formal votes on the specific course changes at that session; instead, administrators presented the planned offerings and answered board questions.