SHORT NEWS: CTE Pathway Highlight – Nursing Careers

MUSD high schools feature 22 Career Pathways, for students to gain insights on potential careers and have an opportunity to earn college credits through Dual Enrollment or Industry Valued Certifications. The Nursing Pathway is offered at both Madera High Schools. Students begin this pathway their freshman year with an introductory course “exploring health careers”. Their sophomore year builds up their medical language with a medical terminology course. This course allows students to get college credit at Madera Center. In their junior or senior year, students can take either Medical Careers, Sports Medicine or the Nursing Careers class. For Medical Careers, students survey all aspects of healthcare outside of direct patient care. In the sports medicine courses, students assist in treating fellow athletes. Lastly in the Nursing Careers class, students practice the skills necessary to be a nurse. Learning takes place in the classroom and in a nursing facility, such as Avalon or Madera Rehabilitation, putting in actual Clinical hours with patients. At the end of the school year students take the California Department of Public Health Certified Nursing Assistant exam allowing them to earn their Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) license. Last year Madera Unified had a CNA exam 95% pass rate and over 50 students graduated high school with a license. All the students in the Health Career Pathways can earn their First Aid and CPR certifications and complete the OSHA 10 for Medical Careers Certification. The Health Career pathway is one of the largest in Madera Unified, with 270 students enrolled at Madera High school and more than 520 students at Madera South. Madera students can earn real world skills and abilities towards a successful career after high school.