On January 27th roughly 290 sophomores filled the gym for an announcement. They were brought together to discuss next year’s opportunity to join an academy at Lutheran. “The mission of these academies is to help pursue your passion, honor God, and serve the community,” Mr. Thomack said.
The first academy presented to the students was Lights Academy with director Mr. Black. This is a two-class-period course that helps students differentiate their roles as students. Lights Academy is a project based and honors academy that personalizes your work. The course focuses on building research topics, helps with college, creates a personalized learning plan, and presents projects you might be able to pursue. Students are encouraged to join if they are passionate about certain topics, enjoy a social learning environment, and to use their God given gifts.
The next academy presented was Art Academy with director Mr. Hollenbeck. The academy is a two-year program with two periods where students develop an art portfolio of work to show colleges to obtain scholarships and get accepted into art programs. The academy allows students to talk to art professionals helping them improve and grow in their art skills. They also get to do an end of the year portrait contest and Capstone. Additionally, they do chalk art in Denver. Art academy is a safe place to experiment with your art abilities and to try new things without the fear of failure.
Mrs. Davison runs the Music Academy where most of the credit is in performing. Students also learn about music theory in order to better understand how music is made. The different tracks included are performance, composition, Jazz, worship, and education. Music Academy is an individualized experience involving private lessons, senior Capstone projects, research projects, and so much more.
STEM Academy sets you up with the four C’s; coursework, collaborative community experience, cross-academy curriculum, and a Capstone project. This is recommended for those interested in going into engineering and computer science. The academy also includes a medical pathway which allows students to learn course work and even shadow in the Lutheran Hospital.
The next academy is run by Mrs. Van Heuklem called Business Academy, where students will learn how business affects all aspects of life. It is independently motivated and project based where you thrive on your own thoughts and ideas, learning to glorify God through business. The academy meets once a month in the morning and is also required to take two business classes alongside this academy. Students make connections with professions and determine what their future may look like. Students also listen to guest speakers and do competitions, as well as an end of the year Capstone.
The last academy the students at Lutheran listened to was Mission and Ministry Academy presented by Mr. Oberdieck. This academy allows students to pursue their passion, honor God, and serve the community. Students will grow in their faith and get involved in ministry where they will work alongside ministry leaders in senior year.
Rachel Roettjer, a sophomore at Lutheran, said, “I think that the academies are a great opportunity to have more experience in your interests or future career path. I am thinking of joining an academy because it seems like a great way to get involved in what I’m interested in.” Academies are an excellent opportunity to hone in skills and truly prepare for your future.
