Sanée Bell, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning, said the offerings are based on market data on in-demand fields that respond to the workforce needs, including the district’s new utility detection program.
“We have to prepare them for what they’re going to be walking into,” she said at the Nov. 17 work study meeting. “It does no good to prepare students for things that we did when we entered the world of work.”
The rundown
According to agenda documents, the administration is recommending six new courses for the CTE department, including:
- Advanced Placement, or AP, Business with Personal Finance, which mirrors the rigor of a first-year college business course
- Business Law for Real Estate, which allows the district to transition its existing real estate pathway from a two-year program to a more flexible one-year program
- Business Management, specifically for Legacy Virtual High School, to ensure students have a pathway to earn the business and industry endorsement
- Principles of Architecture, Practicum in Construction and Extended Practicum in Construction, supporting a new underground utility detection services program
- Three Academic Decathlon courses, which allow certified staff to teach the courses to students who are pursuing the competition
- AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, two courses for students pursuing engineering, physical science and other STEM majors in college
- Methodology for Academic and Personal Success, designed to develop organizational, academic and personal skills required for success in high school and beyond
The new utility detection program is being launched in partnership with the leading provider, United States Infrastructure Corp., as experts have identified a critical shortage of trained technicians amid the growth of large-scale construction in the state, Bell said.
The district plans to integrate this program with its existing Commercial Driver’s License, or CDL, program in the next phase, Bell said. The integration will allow students to be trained and certified for utility work and also obtain CDL certifications, as these workers need to drive the necessary vehicles.
The bigger picture
With over 31,500 students enrolled in CTE certification courses for the 2025-26 school year, the district offers over 130 CTE courses, supported by the Raines Academy, Miller Career Center and Gerald D. Young Agricultural Sciences Center.
In August, the board voted to expand the Miller Career and Technology Center by 2027 to accommodate the growing interest in technical careers.
What they’re saying
Trustee Morgan Calhoun inquired about how the district ensures students can compete in a jobforce evolving with artificial intelligence and whether the proposed career pathways will remain viable as automation expands.
Bell said the district prioritizes pathways where AI cannot replace the work, citing the need for plumbers, utility workers and construction trades required for large-scale construction—particularly for AI-related infrastructure such as data warehouses.
Bell also said automation still requires skill to verify accuracy, as many of these are advanced search engines that do not replace specialization, as trustee Dawn Champagne noted is the case for accounting.
Check this out
To highlight career options, the district will host a “Find Your Future” event Jan. 27, led by the CTE department, Bell said. The event will feature business and industry partners from all programs of study, showing students how classroom learning translates to real-world careers and their financial benefits.
Looking ahead
Trustees will vote to approve these courses at the Dec. 8 board meeting, per district documents.
Planning for the 2027-28 school year will begin in August 2026 as administrators initiate the course proposal process roughly a year in advance to ensure state-mandated learning objectives are met and to coordinate facilities and staff, Bell said.
