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The iLead Academy in Carrollton, Kentucky, will be opening a WeLead Computer Science as a two-year pilot program in 2024-25.

Proposed by Kentucky Sen. President Pro Tem David Givens in November 2023, WeLeadCS is the first ever virtual career academy that expands access to accelerated early college career pathways in computer science for high school students. It has taught students in Kentucky about computer science and other technology-based subjects and also offers many different pathways students can follow while being exposed to dual credit classes.

The program is open to students in the five local school districts Henry, Trimble, Carroll, Gallatin and Owen who dont want to join the iLead experience at their in-person academy locations, but still want to learn about computer science in a virtual setting.

While iLead does have a physical location, WeLeadCS will not. It will function as entirely virtual with staff being available for teaching and learning on Google Classroom with daily classes and live instruction from the computer science teachers.

The hopes are that iLead Carrollton and We Lead can grow the computer science program and provide more skilled computer science graduates. We just want to give kids every opportunity possible, said Eric Gray, iLead computer science teacher for 9th through 12th grade

The iLead program at Carrollton is already recruiting students to join that program with tours and informational sessions. We start recruitment in January, Jenna Gray, director of iLead said. So far, Carroll County Middle School has already been given a tour of the iLead Academy in Carrollton and the Jefferson Community and Technical College (JCTC) Carrollton campus on Jan. 12. Interested students and parents will also be will invited to an open house at Carrolltons iLead on Jan. 30, from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Students interested in applying for the program will either be invited to join iLead for those who want to attend classes full time or We Lead for those who want to stay in their home district and attend virtually. Applications to iLead open on Feb. 1 and close on Feb 15, and will be able on their website at http://www.ileadacademy.org. The announcement on which new students have been accepted is set for March 15.

The first class new students will experience is the general computer science class where they are introduced to different aspects of computer careers. Whether it be web development or different kinds of programming languages, JavaScript and Python, Eric Gray said.

The second year is when students are ready to move onto their dual credit classes. If they actually continue through our program, they will get a chance to have at least 12 hours of computer science classes that can transfer over to college credit, Gray noted.

Third year students will take a Python Coding class, which will be offered in the fall semester, and a JavaScript Coding class, which will be offered in the spring semester.

Even if they dont follow the computer science curriculum, students at iLead are still able to take computer science courses. We, at iLead, embed computer science and programming across all of our students regardless if theyre in the computer science pathway or not, Jenna Gray said.

WeLeadCS first began during the pandemic in 2020, when teachers from iLead were teaching classes online. We learned that we did online teaching really well and so we thought the computer science pathway lends itself to that type of instruction, Jenna Gray said.

Alicia Sells, Director of Innovation, came up with the idea. They also worked with Northern Kentucky University, Jefferson Community and Technical College, and the Kentucky Department of Education. Sells thought they could provide online computer science classes to other districts who dont currently offer computer science programs or have teachers who can teach that curriculum.

With iLead first regional STEM-based career academy in Kentucky, started in 2014, and offers a lot of different pathways for students such as nursing, engineering, biomedical, education, and other kinds of high-need careers in the region, computer science was just another need.

The iLead location in Carrollton is in the strip mall with Kroger as a neighbor. The academy, much like its counterparts, offers technical skills and opportunities to get ready for college and future careers.

What iLead offers is a chance and an opportunity for the students to come in and its pretty accelerated because by the time theyre into their junior year here, they are taking college classes full time, Eric Gray said.

Excerpt from:

iLead Academy gets two-year pilot to add WeLead virtual curriculum - Madison Courier