PSP - Professional Schools Program

(PSP) Professional Schools Program

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Children have been asked that ever since they could talk.

Most of us vacillate in our answer to this proverbial question throughout our youth, even in the first years of college. According to a recent study by the National Center for Education Statistics, 33 percent of undergraduate students will change majors at least once. So what can we, as educators, do to better prepare our high schoolers to make informed and wise life decisions?

Legacy’s answer is the Professional Schools Program (PSP) -- an extension of our core liberal arts curriculum that is based on a college-inspired organizational structure. It embodies the future of education by empowering students to develop a road map to explore potential careers and to assume personal ownership of their academic pursuits.

This innovative program consists of five professional schools that provide opportunities in the following areas: business, engineering/technology, fine arts, the humanities, and medicine. For the 2018–2019 academic year, we welcomed three Deans to the Legacy staff three educators: Rob Armstrong, Dean of the Humanities and Business Schools; Kara Hermogeno, Dean of the Engineering/Technology School and the School of Medicine; and Chris Keyes, Dean of the School of Fine Arts. The deans, who teach classes and advise students, are also charged with establishing program-relevant clubs and scheduling symposia, seminars, and roundtable discussions with Christian professionals. In the coming years two additional deans will join the team, thereby completing the implementation process.

LEGACY CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 25

PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS PROGRAM

The professional school curriculum will be introduced systematically, in concert with our existing core academic requirements. Beginning this year, all students will determine which school they’d like to explore, thus giving them a voice in their academic future. Legacy will employ industry-leading guidance tools to gauge career interest and provide access to advisers and counselors to help students gain further insight. In addition, students will attend forums and seminars and discuss various career options with professionals and peers.

Beverly Henry Wheeler, the regional director of admissions and past president of the National Association for College Admissions Counselors has endorsed this innovative approach. “The new Professional Schools Program will equip LCA students for the rigorous curriculum that awaits them at the college level. It’s the innovative education required for students not only to attend college, but also to be successful leaders once they arrive.”

Should students be undecided or desire a change, the PSP affords them the flexibility to alter their academic pathway. Interdisciplinary options will enable students to investigate a variety of interests or change their discipline midstream. Our belief is that it’s far better for young people to discover that they weren’t called to a profession in high school than to fumble through a few precious years at a university before making that determination.

As the program progresses, students will be encouraged to develop mentoring relationships with those in other grades who are on a similar academic and professional path.

The PSP has been designed to further Legacy’s core mission to “develop strong leaders with biblical convictions who are equipped to succeed in college and beyond.” Within each professional school is a biblical worldview course tailored to that area of study. This strategic approach will help guide students to discover God’s calling on their lives through mentoring and academic discipleship.

Today’s high school students face pressures from many sources. From academics to social activities, from athletics to uncertainties in their faith, many of today’s youth are woefully unprepared and ill-equipped to manage their daily lives with resolve and confidence. With the introduction of the PSP, Legacy Christian Academy will arm students with the skills and competencies to tackle life’s challenges, all while exploring their purpose and calling.

26

LEGACY CHRISTIAN ACADEMY

PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS

The School of Business will offer four academic concentrations: entrepreneurship and management, financeand accounting, communications and marketing, andinterdisciplinary studies. Students in the School of Business willtake the Business Foundations class during their sophomoreyear. In addition to involvement in symposia and school clubs,students will be introduced to the structure of the businessworld. The biblical worldview course for this school is ServantLeadership. From there, students decide which aspect ofbusiness they’d like to explore, and that will determine the corecourses for that concentration. The final professional schoolrequirement is the practicum, which will be either a capstoneproject or an internship.

The School of Humanities will offer four academic concentrations: law and political science, ministry andeducation, scholarship, and interdisciplinary studies. Studentsin the School of Humanities will strengthen their foreignlanguage proficiency with an additional course. Among theenrichment activities will be symposia and industry-relevantclubs. The biblical worldview course for this school is entitledThe Christian Mind. As with all professional schools, the finalrequirement will be a capstone project or internship.

The School of Engineering and Technology will offer three academic concentrations: engineering, computerscience, and interdisciplinary studies. Due to of the significantmath requirements in technology and engineering, theprofessional core class for this school is a fifth math course.This school’s biblical worldview course is Faith and Science.Kara Hermogeno, dean of the school, says she’s excited to givestudents access to professionals in science and technology whoare strong both academically and spiritually. Students will endthe course of study with an internship or capstone project toround out their experience.

The School of Fine Arts will offer three concentrations: performing arts, visual arts, and interdisciplinary studies.Performing arts and visual arts will require a second year offine art as part of the professional core. A Christian Perspectiveon the Arts will be the biblical worldview course. Chris Keyes,dean for the School of Fine Arts, says she wants students tounderstand that they shouldn’t be just talented producers ofart, music, and theater: They also need to be wise consumersof those arts. She hopes to help her students realize that theirconcentration incorporates studies across disciplines and thatthey’ll learn to use their skills to create new ways to serve othersand create beauty in the world. Consistent with all professionalschools, the formal course of study will culminate with acapstone project.

The School of Medicine will offer three concentrations: pre-med, health services, and interdisciplinary studies. A fifthmath course will be required, and the biblical worldview courseis called Faith and Science. Dean Hermogeno, is enthusiasticabout the program. “I’m looking forward to connecting studentswith their passions and then being able to bring real-lifesituations, internships, and practicums, so they’ll see the valuein moving toward their field of interest. I’m also excited towatch these students pursue God’s calling on their lives andto be a part of that discerning process.” A capstone project orinternship will complete the student’s field of study.

LEGACY CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 27