The school will be introducing the following new courses in the 2024-2025 school year: Applied Digital Applications & Responsibility, World Literature, Arabic, Language for Heritage Speakers of Arabic, Language for Heritage Speakers of Spanish, AP Precalculus, AP Precalculus BC, Dance Performance: Ballet, Modern, Jazz & Ethnic Folk, IB Dance Standard Level, IB Psychology Higher Level, IB Design Technology Higher Level, Finance & Investment, Finance & Investment Capstone, Business Administration Capstone, Computer Science: Special Topics, Interior Design Fundamentals, Advanced Interior Design, Digital Design Graphics, Graphic Design & Layout, Digital Design Capstone, Principles of Exercise Science and Principles of Literacy.

Senior Lani Samms said, “I wish I would have been able to take IB Dance ballet because I think it would have made my senior schedule so much better, and I love ballet; I love to dance. I’m glad that my underclassmen get to take it, but I’m very unfortunate that I don’t get to take it.”

Regarding the new design capstone courses, freshman Milica Srnic said, “I think that graphic design is a very good course because my brother took it and he thinks it’s very beneficial. It didn’t help him get in (to college), but now he feels like it can help him with studying and stuff.”

Principal Tim Phares said, “Every year, in September, we have what’s called curriculum advisory. (In) all of our departments, department chairs work with their teachers to evaluate the courses that are within those departments. And they bring new courses and sometimes deletion of old courses to the conversation so that we are looking at kids’ needs.”

Phares said the need for courses is assessed in different ways as the school’s administration considers class enrollment numbers and general interest in courses, according to the Counseling Center. Department of Education standards also must be considered when deciding courses.

Principal Tim Phares said, “We are constantly looking at that (classes) based on the requirements that are put on to us by the Department of Education and the graduation requirements. There’s a new law coming into play for I believe our incoming freshmen that will have to graduate with a personal finance course. So we’re trying to sort through that and what that looks like.”

The law was enacted by Indiana Senate Bill 35, which requires financial literacy education starting with the Class of 2028.

Phares said onboarding new teachers must be considered before the 2024-2025 school year.

“Arabic is an example (of a course that cannot be taught by existing teachers). We have to wait and see the course selection on that to determine if we would need a full time Arabic teacher initially. Would it be half (time), would it just be a couple sections? And we’d have to look at specific licensure on that for a teacher to be able to teach that course.”