School Information

The Bloomington Public Schools’ Advanced Placement (AP) Program enables students to pursue college-level studies while still in high school. AP courses make substantial academic demands on students. Students are required to do considerable outside reading and other assignments and to demonstrate the analytical skills and writing abilities expected of first-year students in a strong college program. AP courses help students develop the intellectual skills and self-discipline they need to do well in college.

AP Exams are an integral part of an AP course. The exam grade provides an important advantage to students in terms of college credit and/or advanced placement for college.

Students who are highly motivated and who meet course prerequisites are recommended to take AP courses and examinations.

Available AP Courses

• Chemistry
• Physics
• Biology
• Calculus
• Statistics
• American Government
• Economics
• Psychology
• Studio Art
• Art History
• U.S. History
• European History
• English Literature and Composition
• English Language and Composition 

The AVID College Readiness System works to ensure students are college-ready by equipping them with the skills, academic behaviors, and college knowledge necessary to succeed at every level from elementary school to college. AVID helps students develop a vision for their future, gain confidence in their abilities, and take ownership of their learning.

KHS AVID Website

Apply Today

Contact

Trisha Meyer
AVID Coordinator
952-681-5083
tmeyer@isd271.org

High school students may take community and technical college courses while still attending Kennedy High School. These high school courses have been matched with similar courses at various community and technical colleges.  Students meeting the college requirements will earn college credit, as well as high school credit, to apply toward graduation. You always need to check with the college or university of your choice for specific criteria in a program or major because not all credits will move into all programs or majors.

Articulated Courses Currently offered at Kennedy High School

• Advanced Woodworking (HTC)
• Intro to Woodworking  (HTC)
• Culinary
• Child Development II
• Computer Applications
• Accounting A
• Introduction to Business Management
• Marketing-Advertising / Sports and Entertainment Marketing  (Must take both courses to receive articulation credits)

Eligible institutions include the University of Minnesota and its branches, state universities, community colleges, vocational technical colleges, and Minnesota two-year or four-year liberal arts degree-granting residential private colleges.

You may apply to enroll in one or more classes. Admission requirements, granting of credit(s), and the number of courses are determined by the individual postsecondary institutions.  You can choose to take post-secondary courses for high school and post-secondary credit. You must still meet the course requirements of the State Board of Education and the requirements of the Bloomington School District.  If you wish to have further information about the program, please see your high school counselor during the registration process.

It is the student’s responsibility to:

1. Contact and become familiar with the requirements of the individual post-secondary institution
2. Apply to and be accepted by the post-secondary institution
3. Meet with your High School Counselor and receive approval each semester
4. Register for approved post-secondary courses.

College in the Schools (CIS) is a concurrent enrollment partnership program between the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and Bloomington Public Schools. CIS delivers regular and honors introductory level, U of M credit courses to high-achieving high school students in their own high schools. Selected high school teachers are appointed as affiliated U of M faculty and teach the U of M courses in the high school, supported by ongoing, continuous professional development provided by U of M faculty.

More Information

College Possible is a program designed to assist students in their college planning and preparation. It is a nonprofit organization making college admission and success possible for students, through an intensive curriculum of coaching and support. This help covers ACT/SAT test preparation, college application assistance, financial aid consulting, guidance in the college transition, and support toward college degree completion.

Contact

Molly Schwartz
College Possible Coach
mschwartz@collegepossible.org

Riley Nelson
Program Coordinator
rnelson@collegepossible.org

Through a growing partnership with Normandale Community College, Kennedy High School is pleased to offer an additional pathway for college-bound students through concurrent enrollment.  Concurrent enrollment courses are college courses offered at the high school, taught by a credentialed high school teacher.  

Students who successfully complete these courses generate dual high school and transcripted college credit from the partnering postsecondary institution.  These credits may also be transferred to any MNSCU institution.  There is no cost for qualified students to participate.  Research shows that high school students who participate in accelerated learning options, such as concurrent enrollment, benefit greatly from:

• Exposure to high expectations. 
• Participation in challenging courses. 
• The momentum gained by earning college credits while still in high school.

Kennedy's concurrent enrollment courses challenge high school students to think critically and read and write analytically, preparing students for greater success in college.  Through participation in concurrent enrollment, high schools establish themselves as education leaders by setting high standards and preparing students for the 21st Century.

Concurrent Enrollment Courses Offered at Kennedy

• Honors Pre-Calculus
• College Algebra and Probability
• Honors World Literature (Interdisciplinary and Regular)
• Introduction to Education (Youth Service)
• African American Literature
• Guitar II
• Statway Math
• Minnesota History
• Honors Physical Education

Kennedy offers a Dimensions Academy STEM and Humanities program for profoundly gifted students. 

Dimensions Academy High School

Curriculum in Honors courses extends well beyond the core essential and important standards. Courses move at an accelerated pace, which allows for topics to be explored in greater depth, as well as for the inclusion of additional topics. Instruction in Honors courses is student-centered and involves an emphasis on self-directed learning, open-ended questions and a discovery approach to learning. Students in Honors courses are expected to show greater independence, complexity and depth of thought in their work, and to analyze, evaluate and synthesize data and ideas.

Honors and accelerated courses are available in math, science, English, social studies and pre-engineering.

Nobel is an honors humanities pathway designed to nurture and develop the creativity of high school students and is housed at John F. Kennedy High School in Bloomington, MN. Students who have been identified as creatively talented are grouped together in a cohort for key humanities classes and for their advisory where they work with teachers who have been trained to grow creativity. Focusing on critical thinking and creativity, students will engage in a rich curriculum connecting literature, social sciences, philosophy and the arts.

Students are identified using the Torrance Test of Creativity and through their MAP reading test scores. Students who graduate from the Valley View Middle School (VVMS) Nobel program will automatically be placed in the KHS cohort. However, it is not a requirement that a student has attended VVMS or even Bloomington Public Schools to be placed in the Nobel cohort.

Current 8th graders who are in the Kennedy attendance area and who have an 85% or higher on their MAP reading test are eligible to take the Torrance Test of Creativity (TTCT) to be considered for the cohort. Students will be invited to join the cohort at KHS based on their TTCT test scores.  If you are interested in having your student tested contact Meredith Aby-Keirstead, a BPS gifted and talented coordinator, at maby@isd271.org or at 952-806-7811.

Nobel information

Contact

Meredith Aby-Keirstead
High School Gifted and Talented Coordinator
952-806-7811
maby@isd271.org

Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is centered around the idea of bringing practical application to students while their opinions about careers and interests are still forming. PLTW’s classroom instruction, generally one-third theory and two-thirds application, gives students meaningful, hands-on experience in problem-solving, teamwork, and project-based learning. Project Lead The Way has developed a four-year sequence of courses that, when combined with college preparatory mathematics and science courses in high school, introduces students to the scope, rigor and discipline of engineering and engineering technology prior to entering college.

The courses are: Introduction to Engineering Design, Digital Electronics, Principles of Engineering, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Engineering Design and Development. Students have the opportunity to earn a weighted grade and possibly a college credit for their work.

This course is an activity that provides a way for high achieving Kennedy students to demonstrate the knowledge and skills they acquired during their secondary school years of education.  It engages students in a project/experience that focuses on an interest, career path or academic pursuit that synthesizes classroom study and real-world perspective.  

High school students are asked to demonstrate their ability to apply key knowledge and skills by planning, completing and presenting a project linked to one or more areas of personal interest and the individual’s post-secondary plan.  Students will work with a community advisor and faculty coordinator to develop an in-depth project, reflective portfolio, community service and/or internship.  As a required part of the experience, the student will demonstrate the results of their study to a committee at the end of the term.