pathways. While the district has not yet established formal co-op programs with local businesses, the foundation for such partnerships is being built through stronger relationships with community organizations that already support scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors. PREPARING FOR THE NEW ECONOMY Recent flexibility from the New York State Education Department opened doors that Mount Sinai moved quickly to enter. Dr. Peter Branscombe, deputy superintendent, describes the opportunity: “New York State Education Department allowed for some flexibility with certifying some of our teachers with additional computer science certifications. We’ve had numerous additional teachers take on that responsibility coming into this school year, and it just opens a number of different doors for us to go down that path, whether it’s with AI, whether it’s with coding.” The multi-teacher approach to computer science expands course offerings without major budget increases, a practical solution for a district spending $28,757 per student annually. “The more of our teachers we can get computer science certified, the better,” Dr. Branscombe says. “It’s only going to help us in the long run.” The certification push aligns with workforce trends across Suffolk County, where educational services and professional sectors employ significant portions of the population. Dr. Criscione frames the broader curricular evolution as addressing jobs that didn’t exist a decade ago and anticipating ones that will emerge.“We are looking at ways to restructure our middle school to align with the high school with some of the new pieces that we want: coding, financial literacy, computer science,” she says. Elsesser has already adjusted scheduling to accommodate more electives at the middle school level, creating room for students to explore technical subjects earlier. The district is also integrating civic readiness programs starting in middle school, recognizing that workforce preparation includes understanding how economic and political systems function.“It’s kind of like a multi-pronged approach,” Dr. Criscione adds, describing how changes at different grade levels compound to create more options by the time students reach their senior year. 286 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 12
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTI5MjAx