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Madison Central: Bridging Education and the Workforce Audrey Guynes Madison Central High School proudly hosts two academies that are fostering the future of education, using hometown networking to strengthen transferable and work force ready skills in our local community and economy. The Academy of Engineering and the Academy of Multimedia and Communications both offer unique opportunities for students to work hands-on in the classroom, as well as outside the classroom, with the help of dedicated professionals in the fields providing job shadowing, internships, and externships. The Academy of Engineering is structured around Project Lead the Way, a nationally recognized project-based engineering curriculum. The PLTW curriculum provides the students insight into how their assignments in the classroom have relevance to real-world scenarios. To achieve this model, a cohort of teachers ensure that their classrooms reflect the academy’s lessons. This collaboration enables the student to maximize their education, receiving industry certifications and college credit, while maintaining a diverse range of classes. Students that complete the PLTW engineering courses, and pass the PLTW exam and at least two advanced placement exams, achieve the AP + PLTW Student Recognition, further enhancing their resumes for college entrance. Madison Central has had several students achieve this recognition since 2015. The Academy of Multimedia and Communications is a mixed media program where students choose between the pathways of video production, broadcast journalism, or sports marketing. These can be taken in conjunction with one another, but video production is known as the core of AMC as all are required to take it. The students, similar to the engineering academy, go through their coursework in a cohort. This allows the students to focus on their projects including the Jaguar News Network, preparing for film festival, and the various sport hype videos. If you have ever seen a football hype video from Madison Central, you have seen the work of the AMC students. It takes a collective effort. Each academy has its own advisory board consisting of students, parents, teachers, and business-leaders that provide input to keep the curriculum current with business needs and trends. The network of support is what keeps much of this program running and students interested. With businesses willing to participate in hosting students, Madison Central is able to train the next generation for the work force. This is a key initiative enforced in the academies for the students to improve upon their technological and employability skills. Undoubtedly, this will shape the students into future workers and gain an understanding of what our area has to offer. Laura Beth Guynes, a fellow graduate of Madison Central and work-based learning coordinator, plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between education and the workforce. She works to connect the students and educators with the local businesses. Students either gain employment or internship programs through this program. Guynes extends into both academies, ensuring their work-based learning experiences are aligned with their curriculum. “This is an experience that will not only prepare them for the workforce, but that will also encourage those same students to return home, continuing to contribute to the prosperity of our community,” Guynes said. Through her work, students have found internships through the MS Public Broadcasting, Madison County Library, local design consultants, Neel Schaffer Engineering, Nissan, Power Source, and Kiser Engineering to name a few. Several of the stakeholders are former graduates and parents to which they are credited to the success of the academies. The academy programs at Madison Central High School foster not only the development of students’ technical skills but will also pair them with our local firms and businesses to gain real world experience in their chosen fields. With the continuous support of our community, students are able to gain invaluable experience in their chosen fields and by forging strong partnerships with local businesses, Madison Central is able to provide work-based learning for the students to thrive. If you are a company interested in partnering with Madison County Schools to participate in the internship program, please contact Mrs. Guynes via email – wbl@madison-schools.com. Hometown MADISON • 75