CTECH adding mobile app and web design courses for local high schoolers

Beginning next fall, students in Rochester Public Schools will have the opportunity to take college-level computer science courses in mobile app development and web design.

The courses, open to juniors and seniors at all three public high schools, are being offered as part of a partnership with Rochester Community and Technical College. The classes will be held at the Career and Technical Education Center at Heintz (CTECH). 

“RPS and RCTC have been building bridges for Rochester’s students for a long, long time, and we will continue to do so because it is the right thing to do," Dale Amy, RCTC’s director of high school collaborations, said in an announcement.

The first course, to be offered for the 2018-19 school year, will focus on the development of mobile applications. Then in 2019-20, a course will be offered on web design using JavaScript. The goal is to alternate between the two courses every other year.

John Bartucz, a computer science teacher with RPS, said the courses will offer a practical, hands-on experience for students. Rather than focusing solely on the technical components, Bartucz wants students to also learn the "softer skills" needed to be successful, such as how to work well in teams and interact with clients.

"It’s not just a programming course," Bartucz said. "I want students to get an understanding of the entire process."

In addition to building a portfolio, students who take Bartucz's courses can apply their credits toward their education at any school in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

"If they can get one of their credits right off the bat," he added, "it saves them a lot of money and puts them that much further ahead."

Cover photo: Licensed / Canva