Every class is important
A deeper look inside the ‘niche’ and elective classes offered
January 20, 2023
NAHS has a collection of niche classes that are designed to give students an edge in unique fields.
Of the top ten things colleges look for in students two of them are diversity and extracurricular participation, according to the ASVAB Program. A class in computer science will better prepare students for college level courses specializing in computer studies.
“I believe AP Computer Science A is probably the one that falls into [a niche] category,” computer science teacher Mrs. Kristin Scott said. “This is the most difficult and time-consuming class, but I believe it is the one that best prepares students who are planning to focus on computer science in college.”
Scott says AP Computer Science is a class where students learn to use Java (a language for programming) and develop a strong foundation in object-oriented programming.
Business teacher and girls softball Coach Shelby Gliebe says her Sports and Entertainment Marketing class is a great way for students to get involved with jobs in and out of college.
“Sports and Entertainment Marketing centers around marketing sports games, players, and other entertainment related events to the public,” Gliebe said. “I think you have to be interested in the sports and entertainment industry to join this class, especially because you have to sign up for an event this semester to work on the big screen.”
The two large screens recently put up in the main gym aren’t to be controlled by adults, but rather, by this class. Students learn how to operate the machinery behind the scenes of sports and entertainment alike.
“Taking this class will give students a huge advantage if they want to pursue a sports or entertainment marketing career,” Gliebe said. “If they don’t, they’ll have some computer skills to gain from it, and the experience of the class.”
This year, student’s in the Sports and Entertainment Marketing class will get to go behind the scenes at a state soccer stadium, gaining a valuable experience to put down on possible resumes, whether to go to a college, or other sports related workspaces. NAHS’s ‘Niche’ classes Accounting Interpersonal relationships Fiber arts Music theory Business Meteorology Culinary Current problems
Science teacher Mr. Bryan Jaquemai says meteorology has helped some students figure out what they wanted to do and gave them a head-start in doing so.
“One [student] went to IU and works for a Meteorology consulting firm,” Mr. Jaquemai said. “The other went into the military and prepared weather forecasts and reports.”
Finding a job in America can be tedious, with thousands of jobs available to work towards, each requiring their own amount of experience and learning, high schools are forced to be more basic than specific. But as NAHS increases the number of specialized classes, Gliebe says more students have the opportunity to find out what may or may not be for them.
Not all niche classes are so specialized either, as some classes that can prepare students for certain work fields can equally prepare a student for life.
Child development and culinary class are two classes that can help students in both day to day life, and in work fields.
Counselors say that students should have 2023/2024 classes chosen by Friday, January 20.
