Superintendent’s Dec. 6, 2023 Update

Dear APS Families,

Last week, the School Board approved the 2024-25 Program of Studies, and I want to ensure families are aware of the improvements in our course offerings for middle and high school students for the upcoming school year.

Program of Studies (POS) for 2024-25: The POS provides a roadmap for students and families by outlining graduation requirements and secondary course offerings throughout APS. This year, we have streamlined access to the POS through a new user-friendly searchable catalog. We have included a short video to help students and families navigate the new platform.

The following courses were added to expand options for students, furthering our ongoing work in areas of literacy, equity, and support for English Learners. These courses align with our current priorities and commitment to serving every student by name, strength and need.

• Intensified English, Science, and Social Studies courses for Grade 6, which expand our middle school intensified offerings to meet the needs of our students who require a more rigorous instructional experience.
• Disciplinary Literacy and Structured Literacy (in place of Reading 6 and Reading Strategies) for Grade 6, where students will engage in discipline-specific reading and writing, as part of our commitment to bringing the Science of Reading to the secondary level.
• Changes to courses for English Learners that help us to better serve their needs and interests, by providing students with access to grade-level content and additional English Language Development courses.
• Additional elective and core high school course offerings, such as African American Studies Advanced Placement (AP), to further diversify choices available to our students as they pursue their interests and expand their experiences.

Students, families, and school counselors work together to plan for students’ learning experiences throughout middle and high school. The academic advisement process for the 2024-25 school year will begin after the new year, and specific details will be communicated through your student’s school. If you have questions on the academic advisement process, please reach out to your child’s school counselor.

Middle and High School Information Sessions: Information sessions are underway now for rising middle and high school students. It can be overwhelming when your child is making the leap to their next school, so we have provided what families need to know about this transition in informational videos. Find the videos, session times and more information on our website

Have a wonderful week!

Sincerely,

Dr. Francisco Durán
Superintendent