In the fall of 2024 and looking into the coming school year, BSM is offering a variety of new courses. Counselors and teachers collaborated to make the curriculum fun and offer intriguing courses to students. For example, students get more freedom once they climb the ladder from year to year and can choose more classes based on their preferences. While some of the new classes are offered to underclassmen, a majority of the courses are a privilege offered just to seniors.
Theology teacher Andretta Hanson is looking forward to having a “Women of the Church” course in the theology department. She is excited because prior BSM students never had the opportunity to take this course. There is no teacher assigned to the class yet, but it has been determined that it will be one of the courses reserved for seniors. The department is working on the exact curriculum and designing the information that will be taught in the class, but it has been determined that students will learn the history behind women in the Catholic Church and the positions women can hold today. Typically, women cannot hold high positions in the Church, like being a priest or a pope. This class will talk about the “whys” behind it. “It’s going to be a very interesting topic to cover because right now there is still a question hanging, especially in the Catholic Church, like why can’t [women] become priests?” Hanson said.
Another department that will receive new classes is the science department. These new classes will consist of “Care for God’s Creation,” “Human Anatomy,” and “AP Environmental Science.” Science teacher Dr. Moni Berg Binder says she is eager to teach the AP Environmental Science class, where students will partake in labs and fieldwork as well as learn to research and investigate the interconnections of the natural world. They will also have the opportunity to analyze natural and human-responsible environmental problems. “I will be the teacher for AP Environmental Science next year. I’m very excited that BSM is offering the course,” Berg Binder said.
Additionally, there are seven new internship courses created for BSM students for the fall, including business and marketing for the hockey program, college and career counseling, Little Knights early childhood program, marketing and communications, parent association, and technology. Explore, Partner, Inspire, Connect (EPIC) internships are also offered to create an opportunity for students to participate in a work environment to determine whether to continue to pursue a career in that field. “We will connect the best faculty and teachers to guide our students through the EPIC program. This will be finalized in the summer,” Guidance & College Counselor Vicky Haas said.