New Students, New Opportunities
By Marisa Silk, Staff Writer
September 25, 2019
The Innovation Pathways Program is a new opportunity for freshmen at Norwood High. It is a healthcare centered curriculum that paves the way for a student’s future career in the medical field.
This self-paced class, all online, gives students the ability to discover their specific interests and career in healthcare. The program from Brigham Young University allows students to also gain credentials, such as an OSHA 10 Certification, CPR certification, CPI certification, and more. It is also a great resume builder already set in motion for employers, secondary education, and internships for when the time comes.
The Innovation Pathways Program is “a unique student driven learning experience that is both academically and intellectually challenging in preparation for both college and twenty first-century healthcare careers” says Mrs. Jean-Noel.
According to Jean-Noel, the class is not an elective, but a program that contains individual course work, reflection, work-based learning, credentials, and individualized career-counseling with Jean-Noel herself, once a month. This helps the students specify their healthcare career they wish to pursue, and find internships that coincide with said career. Jean-Noel will “tailor it [internships] to that person’s career goals” as the course goes on. Her goal is to have a group of 20 freshmen each year take this program in the hope of making their resumes more “robust”, and have real-life experience when leaving Norwood High.
Stephen Burrill, the accounting teacher at Norwood High, proctors the class, and makes sure everyone stays on task due to the unique qualities of the self-paced online course. Burrill sees it as “knocking out three or four birds with one stone” as students are learning how to manage their time when it comes to their section due dates for the course and through gaining skills and opportunities along with it.
Burrill says the program is a “real differentiator [for students] in terms of just figuring out where you want to be in a couple years. I know it’s early, but if you can pinpoint if you have an interest in the healthcare industry, then see what it’s all about, that’s really cool. The freshmen that are taking it are very fortunate and I think a lot of students, upperclassmen, have shown that if it was around when they were coming through a lot of people would have done it.”
As the year goes on, Burrill addresses how the class will be a challenge for students with balancing their time, but he says “the group has a good idea on how to budget their time, but as schedules pick up things tend to get busy... things get in the way and things happen, that's natural.''
Meredith Cannon, an Innovation Pathways participant, wishes to be a physical therapist in her future and is grateful for the benefits the program offers. The program in her eyes is different for every person. Cannon recommends the program to any incoming freshman who is looking for a career in healthcare studies because of the opportunities and the independence it gives her.
Cannon says, “I like the independence and I like how I don’t have to wait and listen to a teacher talk all day, and you get to be with your friends...I really like how it’s just online, and you can go at your own pace.”
A misconception among students not in the program is that it is taking directed studies out of a school schedule. However, Cannon explains how it only takes away a study out if the class is considered a major. Cannon “knew that this medical healthcare innovation pathway would take the place of accounting, so if you do it as a major then it’s your elective. The you would have a study every day besides the day it drops, and this drops one day and so then if you do it as a minor then it does become your study if you have another elective along with it.”
The real-life application of the class gives students a chance to see healthcare occupations in the field firsthand. On October 9, the Innovation Pathways Program is going to Norwood Hospital to shadow different counterparts. There will be a series of rotations at Norwood Hospital for every student to see each position for themselves. Along with field trips, there will be internships students will be encouraged to take as well with Jean-Noel’s help out of school. This is just the first step towards each students’ future in the medical field.