integratedservicespsd

April 8, 2016April 12, 2016

Poudre High School ACE program.

Poudre High School is alive with professionally made banners. The source of this school spirit is none other than the Alternative Cooperative Education program’s Sign Shop. PHS students that take either economics or personal financial literacy through ACE are eligible to work in the Sign Shop as paid employees, earning credit toward graduation. Not only does the Sign Shop make banners, they are able to also create decals, t-shirts and other promotional items.

“At PHS, the ACE program is well known for their sign shop. Students work hard to create professional signs that are located in the community and in PSD. Integrated Services signs were made by the PHS sign shop and we frequently hear positive comments about them,” says Poudre School District Integrated Services Director Sarah Belleau.

Wendy Tomaschow and Wendi Bryner work together to create two sides to the ACE program. Wendi Miller teaches the instructional classroom portion while Wendy Tomaschow runs the business side of the Poudre ACE Sign Shop (P.A.S.S.). Students are able to experience what it is like to be an employee in a functioning business as well as what it looks like to take on greater roles as an entrepreneur.

Poudre School District Integrated Services Director: Sarah Belleau 2407 Laporte Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80521

April 8, 2016

Rocky Mountain High School ACE program.

The Alternative Cooperative Education program at DSC_0356 (2) Rocky Mountain High School is a
constant buzz of students and machines. Their visionary and teacher, Kim Nigro, is in constant motion. She and the Rocky team have built a culture where everyone is welcome and cared for. They are focused on preparing students for the future after high school.

Student
work is a mix of classroom instruction/projects and hands on work experience. As with many ACE programs in Poudre School District, the Rocky ACE program seeks to provide students with the opportunity to try out and build on skills in a variety of job trades. Rocky’s entrepreneurial section of the ACE program is called Rock It. Rock It runs a variety of businesses, including a snack shop, merchandise etching, t-shirt printing and gardening in their brand new Geo-Dome.

Poudre School District Director of Integrated Services Sarah Belleau shared, “RMHS is known for the entrepreneurial opportunities that the ACE program provides. Kim Nigro is creative in establishing small businesses that the students in the ACE programs run. Kim’s ACE class is full of enthusiastic students who can describe their businesses to anyone who enters.”

Poudre School District Integrated Services Director: Sarah Belleau 2407 Laporte Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80521

April 8, 2016April 12, 2016

Centennial High School ACE program.

The fast paced, condensed schedule of Centennial High School is unlike any other in Poudre School District. As an alternative high school option, Centennial operates on an abbreviated hexter schedule. For Centennial, the focus of the Alternative Cooperative Education (ACE) program is job/life readiness for high functioning at risk students.

Each Centennial student goes through the ACE program fulfilling either personal financial literacy or economics requirements. ACE teacher Cassidy Montoya has created a fun, energetic, fast-pace and informative environment complete with intermittent “brain breaks.”

Director of Integrated Services Sarah Belleau says, “Cassidy works with a wide variety of students who may have struggled in a traditional school settings. She has diligently worked to find meaningful internships and experiences for students. Cassidy’s relationships with her students are strong which in turn helps her when finding meaningful experiences.”

Unlike other traditional programs, Centennial does not have a full time, student run business. With the shortened schedule, students have a few weeks at the end of the semester to experience different jobs. However, throughout the semester Cassidy Montoya runs a snack shop for ACE that will fund a scholarship for a graduating senior.

Poudre School District Integrated Services Director: Sarah Belleau 2407 Laporte Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80521

April 8, 2016April 14, 2016

Do you know ACE? You should!

As small children we dream of careers like cowboys, princesses or astronauts. The truth is that for most of us, becoming a princess is an unlikely profession. Instead of what we will become, our focus shifts to when we will enter the workforce. At Poudre School District, we want students to be the most prepared they can be whenever, the time comes. When a student is supported throughout school with special education services, life and job preparation are critical to post-education readiness. One way students can be prepare is through Poudre School District’s Alternative Cooperative Education program (ACE).

ACE is a nationwide program designed to foster job readiness skills, entrepreneurial skills and career awareness in and out of classroom settings. PSD students fulfill required credits in economics and/or personal financial literacy classes with class course work and on site entrepreneurial experience. Often students participate in internships in the community.

With passionate teachers and dedicated paraprofessionals, each ACE program has created unique entrepreneurial opportunities. Educators become equal parts job/life coach and cheerleader. Each of the four comprehensive high schools as well as Centennial High School participate in the ACE program through the support of PSD’s Integrated Services department. “ACE provides a lifelong pathway to graduation and employment for students with a disability and those considered at risk,” according to Career and Tech Education Coordinator, Kathy Hanson.

To learn more about each site’s ACE program, click the links below:

Poudre High School

Rocky Mountain High School

Fort Collins High School

Fossil Ridge High School

Centennial High School

March 1, 2016March 1, 2016

Unified Basketball Regional Tournament: Part 1

February 17, 2016

Bacon Elementary taking to the streets.

Spending time outside of the classroom is a great way for students to practice soft skills. The time away allows students to interact with people in the community, by means of purposeful field trips. Through a Community Based Education Grant, Integrated Service teacher Jake Neufeld has mapped out a year full of trips to places like the grocery store, Target, Michaels and even bowling.

Poudre School District Integrated Services Director: Sarah Belleau 2407 Laporte Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80521

February 9, 2016February 10, 2016

Jon Davenport

At Zach Elementary you will find Integrated Services teacher, Jon Davenport. With multiple education degrees, including psychology, special education and administration, Dr. Davenport brings his talents to the students at Zach Elementary where he supports students in realizing success.

In Dr. Davenport’s words “My favorite (part of this job) is working with students and celebrating their growth and progress…. celebrating with parents, celebrating with classroom teachers and the rest of the team. There is nothing better than sharing growth with last year’s teachers.”

Go green and gold!