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District updates human services and culinary pathway; ProStart and ServSafe added
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Summary
The district presented a curriculum review that updates course titles and sequencing in human services/Family & Consumer Sciences, adds ProStart 1 (and a ProStart pathway), and plans ServSafe and other industry credentials for students.
Urbandale school staff summarized a yearlong review of the human services/Family & Consumer Sciences (FCS) pathway and proposed changes to course titles, sequencing and industry credentials.
Key changes: Staff updated lower‑ and upper‑level course names to better reflect content (for example, Food and Nutrition I/II became Introduction to Culinary Arts) and proposed the Jayhawk Culinary Academy with ProStart 1 and ProStart 2 as two new offerings. ServSafe food‑handler instruction will be embedded in ProStart 1; students who complete the unit can pursue ServSafe certification. The district also plans credentialing tied to teacher‑academy coursework (paraeducator credential and pediatric first aid) and to offer pathways for internships and competencies tied to Career and Technical Education (CTE) standards.
Rationale and sequencing: The review team used industry standards, student demand, neighboring districts’ offerings and results from a state CTE review. Staff said ProStart 2 will not be offered in the immediate upcoming year because ProStart 1 is a prerequisite; ProStart 2 will be added if sufficient enrollment follows from ProStart 1. The district will standardize course titles (dropping ‘‘101/102’’ style labels) and revise textile and clothing to ‘‘Sewing and Fashion Design’’ to better reflect content.
Instructional materials and costs: Staff recommended adopting the publisher course and assessment materials for ProStart 1 and embedding ServSafe materials in the first unit. The district is pursuing a state grant to help pay for industry recognized credentials; staff said ServSafe recently was added to the state’s approved list of credentials. The board discussed the timeline for dual enrollment (DMACC) credits; staff said concurrent‑enrollment approval depends on the instructor meeting DMACC qualifications.
What’s next: Staff will complete the remaining review item (Adulting Essentials) next year and return with final course approvals and material requests.
