At its December 11 meeting, the Livingston Board of Education discussed its new course oferings, including a partnership with the College of New Jersey (TCNJ).
TCNJ Partnership
Mark Stern, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction, and innovation, announced that the district plans to partner with the College ofNew Jersey (TCNJ) to provide LHS students with a pathway that is intended to prepare students for a career in education.
“They could potentially be leaving LHS with a semester’s worth of courses that can be parlayed into an education major.” He plans to return to the Board in the beginning of2025 to provide more details.
“We aren’t suggesting that any student should major while in high school, but if this is an area you’re interested in, these courses make sense together,” Stem said.
New Course Offerings
After implementing the 95 Phonics Core program within kindergarten and first grade, the district plans to continue integrating the program within the second and third grades.
Math in Focus Sequencing will be integrated within the seventh grade.
The district also plans to add the course Asian American/Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Studies. Stern explained that this semester-long course “will be looking at both fiction and nonfiction texts, music, and arts to better understand culture and contributions and struggles of AAPI communities and individuals throughout history” Additional courses that will be added in the beginning of the next schoolyear include Chinese2 Honors and Italian 2 Honors. While LHS currently offers AP Computer Science Principles, the district plans to add the course AP Computer Science Principles: Engineering. Sports and Entertainment Marketing will be renamed the Business of Sports and Entertainment, while Introduction to Data Science will be renamed to Data Science Principles.
Final Board Meeting
The Board recognized Board member Jenissa Amette in her final meeting. “While selflessly serving our community, I have also faced racism, microaggressions and challenges throughout my tenure,” Arnette said. “Despite all of it, I was able to keep my head held high and focus on the bigger issue, which is the outcome of our children.”
The Board will next meet on January 7, 2025.
