The 2023-2024 school year is nearly over, and we have some incredible updates to share as we close out another school year!
A few years ago (Spring 2020 to be exact), BEA launched our “Next Level” campaign. This campaign was designed to gather input from the community to help guide us as we looked to you for what you wanted to see offered at BEA Schools. And, you didn’t disappoint with your ideas!
The top five ideas that came out of the poll results voted on by the community were:
Comprehensive Financial Literacy program
Driver’s Education into High School curriculum
Provide medical training that could lead to a career
Address Mental Health Coping Strategies
Expand Career Exploration
These ideas were used to help create our Strategic Roadmap/Operation Plan over the next three years, and I am thrilled to report the exciting updates!
Comprehensive Financial Literacy program: We continue to offer Money Management & Advance Money Management at the High School, but have also added a few opportunities for our elementary and middle school students to gain some insight into financial literacy. At the middle school, our students have participated in “The Game of Life”, which is modeled after the board game of the same name. Students select a card that takes them on a college or career path, and they stop at booths around the gym that are manned by local business folks, and they learn about paying rent, utilities, and more by participating in this game. At the elementary level, we began by offering Junior Achievement in grade 3, and this year expanded that to include both grades 2 & 3! If you are not familiar with Junior Achievement (JA), click this link to learn a little more. In a nutshell, JA is a curriculum that teaches young students about financial literacy. And, the best part is that it is taught by local business volunteers to our students!
Driver’s Education into High School curriculum: we are now in year two of offering our freshmen the classroom hours for Driver’s Ed as part of their schedule.
Provide medical training that could lead to a career: Also in year two is our “Health Science Academy”, which is a program offered at BEA in partnership with South Central College (SCC) in Mankato. Students in 11th grade take two courses through SCC, then their senior year they complete two more courses that include onsite clinicals with area medical facilities (St. Luke’s and UHD). New this year, BEA was a pilot school and hosted the Health Science Mobile Lab that exposed students to a variety of health careers through hands-on stations and activities.
Address Mental Health coping strategies: Three years ago, we purchased a curriculum for all our K-12 students to use that helps students recognize emotions, coping strategies, self regulation, and more. This curriculum, Move This World, will continue to be used as we incorporate Social Emotional Learning in our everyday work. Two years ago, the school was able to partner with a local therapist to offer our staff the benefit of on site meetings. Last year, we were able to house on site for one day per week a Mental Health Therapist who was able to work with her clients (students) at the school. Our continued work with addressing mental health needs will continue into the future!
Expand Career Exploration: this goal was met through a variety of methods. BEA employs a Workforce Coordinator who partners students and local businesses with one another in an effort to educate our students on the local opportunities, as well as build relationships with our business and their future workforce (our students). She achieves this goal through an event called “Tour of Faribault County” where small groups of freshmen/sophomores travel to area businesses for a tour of the facility and learn first hand the ins and outs of the business. In addition, BEA continues to host The Big Ideas Trailer each year where students can partake in virtual reality experiences with Career and Tech Ed occupations. BEA was also happy to host a local Career Fair where we welcomed area businesses to our school so they could offer job opportunities, internships, apprenticeships, and more to our high school students!
As you can see, we’ve been busy these last four years incorporating your ideas into our reality. Thank you all for your ideas, voting, and support - we appreciate our communities!