Inside The Classroom: Occupational Course of Study Program

Inside The Classroom: Occupational Course of Study Program

The Occupational Course of Study Program is run by Mrs. Brister, Mr. Cunningham, and Ms. Crabtree. Each one of them teaches different regular classes in addition to Career Prep. Students in this program are required to take the same courses as regular students, but they will also be required to have four career prep classes, 300 hours of school-based vocational training, 240 hours of community-based vocational training, and 360 hours of successful, paid employment. This program runs the Page Closet which provides clothing for students here who need something formal or semi-formal to wear. They go to the State Employees Credit Union to learn how to open a bank account, make deposits, and take tours of the bank. Also, they went to the Special Olympics to volunteer helping the people participating. When asked what she loved most about teaching this class Mrs. Brister said, “The students are awesome! They really want to learn and they work hard on their worksites as well as in school. I get the opportunity to learn alongside of my students. They teach me something new everyday. I also have the opportunity to develop relationships with employers in the community that give my students opportunity to work with our students to give them skills they need to obtain skills to work in a paid position in the community.” As you can see, this program can be a great deal of work, but helps kids learn how to be prosperous in the future.