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Registration News
The High School Online Registration Process for 2019-2020 begins in November.High School Counselors will visit middle schools to meet with 8th grade students and lead them through registration for their upcoming freshmen year. Curriculum Guides are distributed to students and online registration will open for all current 9th-11th grade students.Click here to download the PPS 2019-2020 High School Curriculum Guide
High school courses taken in 8th grade will be placed on the transcript and will count towards graduation requirements. These courses will not count towards credit, rank, or GPA.
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Preparing to be College and Career Ready
Students will be entering a highly competitive global workforce when they graduate from high school. Nearly 90% of the fastest growing jobs in the United States require education beyond the K-12 experience. Almost all jobs in the foreseeable future will need some form of certification or post-secondary degree. To become career and college ready, students need 21st century technical skills, as well as a strong understanding of English and mathematics. There’s no time like the present to prepare for your future, and Peoria Pathways to Prosperity is where you can start. We’re helping make your school experience forward-looking and exciting by letting you learn more about job and career opportunities available in our community and throughout the world by giving you a choice in what you study.
Our goal is for every Peoria Public School student to graduate globally competitive for work and post-secondary education and prepared for life in the 21st century. Our district has partnered with our community to offer pathways that will expose our students to experiences and opportunities that will open doors for them when they walk across the stage at their high school graduation. Parents and students should use the resources provided in this book to help their student select the Pathway and Course of Study that best fits their interests and needs in order to register for the correct courses. How can you ensure your four years are productive and meaningful? With up to 16 career-focused clusters of study to choose from and an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) you fill out with your parents. Below are other points that will be utilized throughout your four years in high school to prepare you to be Career and/or College Ready:
- All 8th grade students will develop an ILP that includes general graduation requirements and coursework, including out-of-classroom learning opportunities related to your chosen cluster of study.
- Your ILP will be updated annually should your interests or career goals change.
- You can also learn outside of the classroom through job shadowing, mentoring, service learning, school-based clubs and or activities, cooperative education, internships and apprenticeships.
- By the end of 10th grade, you will choose a career pathway that matches your “cluster.” Learn more about the offerings district-wide at Peoria Public Schools on the following pages and the locations of each program. In addition, as you select courses, make sure you are aware where the course is being offered by seeing if a school or schools are listed at the bottom of the course description. Guidance counselors, as well as college and career counselors, are available at each high school to help solidify choices and connect with potential internships in order to have a great, meaningful, high school experience.
Career ClustersCTE programs introduce students to a variety of careers and in many cases, prepare them for entry requirements into specified fields. These courses provide students with academic and technical skills necessary to succeed in the 21st Century knowledge and skills based economy. Some of the CTE courses in Peoria Public Schools can be translated into college credit. College and career exploration through internships, job shadows, and college & career fairs are also part of the CTE approach. While in high school, in addition to taking all the Peoria Public Schools requirements for graduation such as Math, Science, and English, students can experience hands-on training in their chosen industry. You can learn more about these offerings for our students by logging in to Career Cruising with your teenager.
Participating in CTE courses can lead to:- A head start on a college degree by earning credits or certificates in high school.
- High skill, high wage, and high demand occupations.
- Skills that provide an earning advantage both during and after high school through nationally recognized certifications.
- Hands-on work-based learning with the business community.
Peoria Public Schools is proud to offer 37 pathways spread out over the 16 nationally recognized career cluster areas, listed below. The 16 Career Clusters below provide links with additional information that you may find useful along with your Career Cruising profile data to start planning your future classes within the cluster and pathway you choose to study. See your guidance counselor to develop or update your Illinois Learning Plan that will help lead to the career of your choice. In addition, more information can be found by visiting this national resource.
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Early College Credit
Did you know high school students can earn college credit BEFORE graduating from high school? And that this college credit can accelerate your student’s progress through ICC, as well as transfer to four year institutions? Credit can also be applied to career and technical programs at Illinois Central College. Through the Early College at ICC programs, students are provided with the foundation for a successful college career, save money on college credit courses, and get a feel for what college is like. And research has shown that high school students who complete 15 credit hours (about five classes) of college work are more likely to succeed in college and earn a degree.
ICC’s Early College Credit courses fall into one of two categories:- Courses that can be applied to fulfill “general education” requirements at ICC and all Illinois state colleges and universities and at private colleges and universities that have signed the Illinois Articulation Initiative (W) agreement. (You can learn more about the W, which institutions participate, and how students may benefit at itransfer.org/mycreditstransfer/participating.aspx)
- Career and technical education (CTE) courses that fulfill coursework requirements in ICC’s applied science degree and certificate programs. These programs prepare students to enter the workforce when they graduate - usually in two years or fewer.
- The coursework your student completes successfully can help reduce the overall cost of college.
- ICC’s Early College Credit courses, offered in high school, have a reduced tuition per credit hour.
- ICC’s regular college courses are a fraction of the credit hour cost at local colleges and universities. Other colleges charge anywhere from 4 to 15 times as much tuition as ICC.
Source: Individual local college and university websites.Fees and Requirements
- Course fees are assessed for participation in the Early College program, including Early College Credit courses. Anew Pell Pilot Program at ICC allows students to waive fees by completing the FAFSA each fall prior to the following year’s course(s). Free and reduced lunch are no longer a factor in waiving these fees.
- ACCUPLACER is ICC’s placement exam, replacing the COMPASS test. Within the course descriptions found in this book, look for a minimum scoring requirement in reading listed as a pre-requisite for some Early College Credit courses.
ICC is one of 44 community colleges nationwide to be invited to participate in a federal pilot program that
applies Pell Grants for students in high school who enroll in college coursework. The grant:
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Covers tuition, books, and related expenses for high school students enrolling in ICC classes
- Requires completion of the FAFSA to be eligible for funding
- Requires students and their parent/guardian to attend a special orientation session at ICC
- Requires high schools to sign an agreement to participate as partners in the pilot program
Last Modified on March 13, 2019
