Monticello board approves four new elective courses, two contingent on grant funding
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Summary
The board approved four elective courses for the 2026–27 catalog — a Speak & Write ELD course, an outdoor literature/hiking elective, an unmanned aerial systems (drones) course and a CIS intro to special education — with the drones and special-education course contingent on grant awards; the vote was 4–0.
The Monticello Public School District board voted 4–0 on Dec. 15 to add four elective courses to the 2026–27 course catalog, with two classes contingent on receiving grant funding.
Principal Laurie Hanson and staff described the set of electives: an ELD-focused "Speak and Write" course to support multilingual learners; an outdoor/hiking elective with projects such as planning a week-long hike and units on hunting, fishing, farming and forestry ecology; an Unmanned Aerial Systems (drones) course to be integrated into the industrial technology pathway; and a CIS (Career and Industry Standards) introduction to special education course intended to strengthen the education pathway.
Derek Swart and other staff said the Speak and Write course and the outdoor elective would be funded from building budgets and modest materials (they estimated a $350–$1,000 range for subscriptions or reading materials), supplemented by donors and classroom-level fundraising such as DonorsChoose. "All 4 of these courses are elective options," Hanson said as administrators explained class prerequisites and curriculum-development plans.
Administrators cautioned that the drones course is expensive to launch and that the district currently has a policy prohibiting drone use; they said policy would need updating before operations began and that the course launch relies on outside partners and initial funding. The CIS special-education course also depends on grant approval in January or February before it could be offered in 2026–27.
The board approved the courses by motion and voice vote. Administrators said they will return with policy language and implementation details for any course that requires new equipment or an amended district policy.
What’s next: If grant funding is secured, staff will return with policy changes and curriculum details and will schedule courses in the catalog for fall 2026.
