Prosser Career Academy High School, (Chicago, IL). Prosser Career Academy High School offers a range of opportunities to prepare students for college and career readiness. As a career academy, Prosser draws students from all over the city of Chicago with approximately 300 freshmen students coming from over 100 feeder schools.
All Prosser students select a post-secondary pathway at the end of their freshman year. Students pursue either a Career & Technical Education (CTE) or a college preparatory pathway through the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) or the Career Programme.
CTE students engage in a three-year, five-course curriculum in one of nine career preparation pathways. Options are Auto Body Repair, Automotive Technology, Culinary Arts, Digital Media, Electricity, Game Programming, Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC), and Machine Technology. An important CTE partnership is with the Chicago Police and Fire Training Academy (CPFTA). Students spend a half-day at Prosser and half-day at CPFTA. This partnership provides students the training and opportunities for earning career-related credentials through licensing agencies.
Through the IB Diploma Programme, students enroll in two years of standard courses and seven higher level course work in 11th and 12th grades culminating in comprehensive exams. These students conduct independent research, working with a school-based supervisor throughout the process. Similarly, in the IB Career Programme. high-achieving students in the CTE program enroll in two IB Diploma Programme courses and complete a Reflective Project that investigates an ethical dilemma related to their career pathway.
Prosser also offers OneGoal, a program in which a teacher supports a cohort of students through their junior and senior years in high school and their freshman year in college to bolster college enrollment and persistence. Between CTE and IBDP, all Prosser students have the possibility of earning early college and career credits, as well as the opportunity for job shadowing, pre-apprenticeship, industry experience, and campus visits.