Linn-Mar High School’s Venture Academics Program to Launch New Exploring Education Strand in Spring 2025
Marion, Iowa — Venture Academics, Linn-Mar High School’s innovative project-based learning program, will be launching the “Exploring Education” strand in the spring semester of 2025.
This collection of courses is designed to provide high school students interested in careers in education a hands-on, immersive experience in teaching and child development. Linn-Mar sophomores, juniors and seniors taking these classes will earn dual credits for both high school and Kirkwood Community College. The curriculum will cover key topics in education, including child development, teaching methods, and behavior management, offering students a strong foundation for careers in early childhood and primary education. The three college courses students also will take will help them earn their Paraeducator Generalist Certificate through Kirkwood Community College.
A key part of this educational strand is ensuring these high school students have real world learning opportunities. Embedded in Exploring Education will be an opportunity for the high school students to apply their skills in a new learning environment for three year old children called Venture Early Explorers.
The building formerly known as the Learning Resource Center now houses spaces for collaborative high school learning. One classroom space has been designed to support the Venture Early Explorers initiative.
Through the Venture Early Explorers, Linn-Mar High School students will spend two mornings each week engaging with 3-year-old children in a supportive, structured learning environment. Under the guidance of Linn-Mar lead instructor Laura Vaske, high school students will plan and lead lessons and activities designed to foster young children’s social skills, early literacy skills, and math readiness.
The three-year-olds will join the high school students at the former Linn-Mar Learning Resource Center (LRC) in a bright and inviting learning space specifically designed for early childhood engagement. The space will be filled with books, games, toys, crafts, puzzles, and STEM activities to create a stimulating and nurturing environment for young learners.
“Similar training opportunities exist at the college level,” said Amy Kortemeyer, superintendent of Linn-Mar Community School District, “and we wanted to replicate that learning experience for our high school students. We are excited to provide them with this one-of-a-kind learning opportunity while earning college credits and gaining hands-on experience.”
This opportunity is different from Little Lions, the district’s preschool program. Little Lions supports four year old children at several district elementary buildings and is funded by the state’s preschool statewide voluntary preschool program funding. Little Lions provides a half-day of preschool programming and is a fully inclusive learning opportunity supported by fully-licensed teachers.
Venture Early Explorers is open to families within and beyond the Linn-Mar district at no cost to children who are three years old, and the high school students will work with children twice each week in the mornings. Children in Venture Early Explorers will benefit from one-on-one and small group interaction with high school students while providing the high school students valuable and immersive learning experience.
The Exploring Education strand is another expansion of Venture Academics project-based learning program. Venture Academics was started in 2021 as a new way of teaching traditional coursework to Linn-Mar high school students. In Venture, students interact with and work on projects alongside local businesses and professionals to enrich their learning through learning pathways like advanced business, earth science, digital design, biomedical science, life science, behavioral science, civics, marketing essentials, and creative writing. In its first year the program supported about 150 high schoolers, but for the 2024-25 year the high school has more than 345 students registered for Venture Academics.
This first semester of Venture Early Explorers will be limited to only 14 three-year-old participants. Students will launch into this new learning experience beginning in January. Families with three-year-old children who would be interested in participating can register through this form.