What specialized programs and curricula are available in ±«Óãtv?
- Advanced Placement (AP): a program offering college-level courses and examinations to high school students, allowing them to earn college credit for free during their high school years. They are taught by ±«Óãtv faculty, using the same content and requirements as those that are taught at universities.
- Offered at: Fort Collins High, Fossil Ridge High, Poudre High, Rocky Mountain High, Timnath Middle-High, and Wellington Middle-High School.
- Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID): AVID is a college and career readiness program that teaches students core WICOR skills (Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization, and Reading) to ensure they not only get into college but have the skills to successfully graduate. AVID deliberately builds a dynamic community where students develop a sense of belonging and become self-advocates for their own learning.
- Offered at: Lincoln Middle School, Fort Collins High School.
- Alternative education campuses: small, specialized secondary schools for students struggling in traditional school settings or who are at risk of not graduating. These schools offer a close-knit community, a trauma-responsive focus, a high level of individual attention, and unique structure offering ample opportunity for credit recovery.
- Offered at: Centennial High School, Poudre Community Academy. Poudre Global Academy and Polaris Expeditionary Learning School are not alternative education campuses, but can be considered as options if a smaller school and more individualized learning model is needed (in the case of Polaris) or if a hybrid learning model is needed to address school aversion/attendance challenges (in the case of PGA).
- : structured programs of study that prepare students for high-demand, high-wage careers and future college or technical training. A wide variety of offerings from health science to agriculture to welding are offered at ±«Óãtv middle and high schools, in addition to the on Poudre High School campus.
- Offered at: All ±«Óãtv middle and high schools ¨C click to see which pathways are offered at each school.
- Concurrent Enrollment: Starting in ninth grade, students can earn college credit while taking Front Range or Aims Community College in their high schools and/or at the ±«Óãtv Career Tech Center. Courses are free for students and transfer to most colleges and universities. To learn more about what courses are offered at each school, please visit the .
- Offered at: All ±«Óãtv high schools and the ±«Óãtv Career Tech Center
- Core Knowledge: A classically-oriented curriculum structured around a sequence of foundational knowledge. This provides a highly content-focused, sequential approach to education. Core Knowledge embodies the philosophy that children enter the world on a more equal playing field when they are given access to a more consistent and unified bank of knowledge. Developed by E.D. Hirsch, this is the same curriculum utilized at most Northern Colorado classical schools
- Offered at: Bethke Elementary, O¡¯Dea Elementary, Traut Elementary, Zach Elementary, and Kinard Middle School.
- Dual Language Immersion: Full bilingual instruction in English and Spanish, fostering higher levels of bilingualism, biliteracy and cultural fluency for students.
- Offered at: Harris Elementary, Irish Elementary, and Boltz Middle School.
- Expeditionary Learning: an educational model where learning revolves around "learning expeditions:" in-depth, long-term studies on a single, compelling theme that integrate multiple subjects and involve rigorous, real-world projects. This provides more hands-on and outdoor learning than a traditional approach.
- Offered at: Polaris Expeditionary Learning School.
- Hybrid Learning: A blend of online and in-person instruction to meet specialized student needs. Instruction is done by licensed teachers while a parent/guardian serves as the learning coach.
- Offered at: Poudre Global Academy.
- International Baccalaureate (IB): a continuum of four challenging educational programs with a focus on international-mindedness and intercultural understanding.
- Offered at: Bennett Elementary, Cache la Poudre Elementary, Dunn Elementary, McGraw Elementary, Riffenburgh Elementary, Cache la Poudre Middle, Lesher Middle, Lincoln Middle, and Poudre High School.
- Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (): a credit-earning high school program run by the US military designed to teach high school students the value of citizenship, leadership, service to the community, personal responsibility, and a sense of accomplishment, while instilling in them self-esteem, teamwork, and self-discipline. Enlisting into the military after participation is not required, but participation can lead to higher rank if a student does enlist. JROTC's objective is that all students graduate from high school on time with a foundation of skills that will enable them to be successful citizens after graduation. All aspects of the program, including uniforms, travel to and from competitions, etc. are free of cost.
- Offered at: Poudre High School, but all ±«Óãtv high school students can participate. JROTC participants from other schools are provided with transportation to and from Poudre High School every day.
- Leader in Me: an evidence-based, whole-school development program based off of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. This program fosters a leadership culture through training, shared visions, goals-setting, academics, and activities to build life-readiness and supportive school environments.
- Offered at: Lopez Elementary and Rice Elementary School.
- : a program re-engaging students who are off-track in their education, enabling students ages 17-20 to earn their alternative high school diploma (a GED equivalent). OU students are able to work towards their traditional high school diploma if the student has 50 credits or less to earn. After successful completion of OU, students have the option of concurrently enrolling in Front Range Community College. This program is free of cost and offers a formal cap-and-gown graduation. Drop-in classes are also available for community members 17+ to study for the HiSET (GED equivalent.) Community members can start this Alternative High School Diploma process at any time during the year.
Offered at: Poudre High School, but the program is not limited to PHS students. Students from anywhere in ±«Óãtv can participate, as well as students from other districts, and 17-20-year-olds who are not currently enrolled in school.
- Project-Based Learning (PBL): an educational model where students learn by working on complex, real-world, hands-on problems or challenges over an extended period.
- Offered at: Olander Elementary, Blevins Middle, and Fort Collins High School.
- STE(A)M: a focus on science, technology, engineering, (arts) and math, setting students up for success in high-demand career fields.
- Offered at: Shepardson Elementary, Tavelli Elementary, and Preston Middle School.
How do I apply for specialized programs?
- Many of the programs listed above are offered by ±«Óãtv neighborhood schools. If your neighborhood school offers a program or curriculum you¡¯re interested in, you can register there as you normally would. If your neighborhood school does not offer the program you want, you can apply through the School of Choice process to a school that does.
- Some of these programs are offered by choice-only schools, in which case you would also apply through the School of Choice process.
- Specialized, optional programs at your neighborhood school (like P-TECH at Poudre High School, Advanced Placement courses at most ±«Óãtv high schools, etc.) have their own registration processes, which you can complete once registered at the school.
What supports are available for multilingual learners?
- Dual-language schools:
- Harris and Irish Bilingual Elementary Schools have full immersion instruction in Spanish and English.
- Harris is a choice-only school, requiring a School of Choice application.
- Irish is a neighborhood school, and families can fill out the School of Choice application if they reside outside of the neighborhood.
- Boltz Middle School offers dual language programming through the School of Choice process.
- Harris and Irish Bilingual Elementary Schools have full immersion instruction in Spanish and English.
- Family liaisons at each school to assist with translation needs and connecting to resources.
- ±Ê³§¶Ù¡¯²õ Language, Culture & Equity department oversees ±Ê³§¶Ù¡¯²õ award-winning English Language Development program. As part of the ±«Óãtv enrollment process, parents/guardians complete a Home Language and Student Housing Survey (Espa?ol) for their child. State and federal regulations require that schools identify and report the languages spoken and heard by each child in the home, and determine eligibility for Immigrant, Migrant, Refugee or McKinney education services.
- If parents/guardians indicate that a language other than English is spoken by the child and/or in the home, an ELD staff member will screen the language portion of the survey and fill out an ELD Student Eligibility Checklist. A staff member will conduct a Home Language interview with a parent or guardian to determine if the student needs to take the, which assesses English development levels and is used to determine eligibility for ELD programs.
- All ELD programs provide every English language learner with equal and meaningful access to all educational opportunities in ±«Óãtv. ELD program specialists are available to assist families with ELD programs and opportunities.
What before- and after-school care options are available at ±«Óãtv schools?
- provides before- and after-school care for children in grades k-5 (in addition to pre-K students at Eyestone Elementary only). Discounts and reduced rates are available to siblings, military families, and families enrolled in ±Ê³§¶Ù¡¯²õ free and reduced meal program.
- Blevins Middle School provides a free in-house for Blevins students. Contact Izzy Crume at (970)657-6612 or icrume@psdschools.org with any questions.