Program aimed at supporting new freshmen BY HARRY WHITED The Anchorage School District will launch its Academies of Anchorage program in the fall of the 2024-25 school year with the Freshman Academy. The Academies program is designed to provide the necessary skills they will need in a career they wish to pursue, according to the Anchorage School District website. Amy Habberstad, the Academy Coach for South Anchorage High School, said the Freshman Academy includes four basic elements: n an orientation on the first day of school; n a field trip to a local college campus; n a career exploration fair; and n a semester-long career exploration class. “During that class, they will learn strategies for success in the high school environment and explore their interests and aptitudes for possible career fields,” Habberstad said. The Freshman Academy, which is part of the broader Academies of Anchorage program, is aimed at incoming Ninth-grade students. The Freshman Academy will be available to all 8 ASD comprehensive high schools. Habberstad said the transformation will be supported for the next five years by a $15 million grant from the Department of Education. Going forward, Habberstad said freshmen will take a semester elective called Freshman Academy Career Exploration (nicknamed FACE) where students can choose a pathway that they may want to have a career in. “If that pathway ends up not being a good fit, students will be able to switch, but by doing good work up front with the selection process, we hope to avoid that,” Habberstad said. The Academies model is a four-year program with different pathways featuring a wide range of careers that students can explore. The pathways were developed from workforce data, survey results and “input from more than 148 ASD teachers and staff,” she said. Habberstad said the Academies program is intended to bring many benefits to students who will have to navigate a world where the workplace is constantly changing. “The workplace of today would be unrecognizable 20 years ago. Automation and technology have fundamentally reshaped how our entire society functions. While the industry has evolved, education has stayed largely the same. In order to truly prepare our students for the world that’s waiting for them when they graduate, we have to transform the way we approach public education.” Habberstad said the program has been in discussion since 2018 with ASD working with partners to see if the program would be a good fit for ASD. When the Anchorage School Board passed the College, Career, and Life Ready goal in 2021, it was decided that the Academy model could be a way to put Anchorage on track to meet those goals. The goal, according to the ASD website, is to “transform the high school experience by teaching through the lens of career-building opportunities, helping students recognize the relevance in our community’s future.” “Going forward, you can expect to see more information about the specific career and college readiness options that are being proposed at ASD high schools,” Habberstad said. The Academies of Anchorage Master Plan, which includes information on curriculum, transportation, scheduling, and staffing was approved by the Anchorage School Board in early June. The program may come with some difficulty in finding highly qualified teachers for the specialty courses. Habberstad said ASD has a solution to solving this problem. “The school district takes the challenge seriously and will soon launch a comprehensive recruitment campaign for all open positions across the district,” she said. Habberstad said that with any complex initiative, it takes a lot of effort to make sure that the correct information is reaching all audiences and that incorrect information about the program is addressed and corrected. “We’ll be launching a significant outreach and information effort,” she said. She said she believes that as more people learn about the program and outreach to the community becomes more common, people will begin to understand the program’s effect on schools. Habberstad said that in other communities, as the program becomes integrated, enthusiasm for learning increases among teachers, parents, and students. “In all cases we reviewed, the Academies model became a significant value-add to local high schools. We expect the Anchorage model to have similar results. For that reason, I suspect a fully-integrated program could actually help attract and retain educators,” she said. Dr. Jharrett Bryantt, Superintendent of the Anchorage School District, predicts the program has long-term potential for Anchorage families. “The Academies of Anchorage initiative holds tremendous promise for addressing workforce challenges and increasing graduation rates. Our focus remains steadfast on improving outcomes for our students,” Bryantt said. Visit the ASD website at www. asdk12.org/Academies for more information. Whited is a lifelong Alaskan studying Journalism at the University of Kansas. Harry is regularly published in the University Daily Kansan and recently garnered the Edgar Wolfe Award in short fiction writing. He enjoys returning to his home state of Alaska to enjoy the abundant outdoor opportunities with his family and friends. www.AlaskaAlliance.com 27
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