The Poughkeepsie City School District Board of Education met on April 10 to discuss career academy proposals to be chosen for next year to be voted on at the board’s next meeting on April 23.
Superintendent Laval Wilson said that he had received seven academy proposals, which will impact Poughkeepsie High School sophomore students beginning in September. The top four academies were selected by a seven-person committee comprised of members of the local education and business communities.
The majority of votes determined design, art and media; business and government; health and human services; and math, science and technology are top choices for the upcoming school year.
The other three proposed electives are: global citizens academy; public service; and tourism, lodging and culinary arts.
“Whether or not the academy is operational, we discussed that with the Chamber (Dutchess Regional Chamber of Commerce),” said Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Karen Markeloff.
Mary Ficht, a member of the Poughkeepsie Public School Teachers Association, and a writer for one of the proposals, said the preparation has taken the staff a lot of time, from drafting to reviewing the proposals.
But some board members were concerned about the specifics of the plans.
“Tonight’s focus is for us to understand the concept of career academies,” said Board Vice-President Ellen Staino. “There are a lot of administrative things that need to go on. This is not what the board is supposed to be doing.”
Staino also wanted to make sure that the district adequately staffs the academies.
“Will there be an additional guidance counselor to coordinate all the academies, and possibly internships?” she asked.
Reaction from the public was mixed.
“I love the fact that you have career academies, said retired resident Kevin Hart. “However, I’m a little worried about a term known as exit points. All of the proposed academies require post-secondary education,” he said.
Board member Greg Charter still maintains his belief that not all students are made out for college.
Charter’s disappointment with the career academies is that civil service professions and trades were not chosen for the proposed academies, noting certain trades and companies which interest him such as fire, police, Con-Edison and Metro-North Railroad.
Wilson said that if the Dutchess County Board of Cooperative Educational Services offers a course in a certain area, he doesn’t want to mirror something already available to students.
Putting all teachers and students on the same page with academic values is also a concern for Michael Friedle, whose daughter, Alice, is currently an eighth-grader at the middle school.
Friedle’s list of concerns included the number of advanced placement (AP) courses, and the opportunity for his daughter to continue taking Spanish when she arrives at the high school. Wilson said that there will still be opportunities for students to take a foreign language and AP courses.
The main concern is scheduling core courses with the academy, as well as taking lunch in-between.
“What we’re doing is broadening the inventory of electives,” said board member Robert Creedon, who also emphasized the only time it would become a “scheduling nightmare” is for 10th-graders.
“This just gives me an extra year to decide whether or not I want my daughter to remain in this school district,” said Friedle.