March 2, 2023 | Jay Stansell
Case Study: Nebraska’s Aurora Public Schools
Aurora, Nebraska is a rural town about one hour west of the state capitol Lincoln. Manufacturing, agriculture, and of course Football, are the backbone of the Aurora Community.
When Nebraska released new state guidance around career exploration and postsecondary planning, Aurora High School leadership knew they needed to provide a more innovative and engaging learning experience to help their students understand the possibilities for them both locally and beyond. And for Principal Doug Kittle, it also had to be relevant for today’s generation of students.
Case Study Overview | Educator Interviews | Student Interviews | Case Study Download
“We were really searching for a curriculum that would check all the boxes. And when Find Your Grind came out, we said you know what, this is something we need to look at. So we looked in depth at the curriculum, we looked at it, compared it to and measured against the new standards and everything matched it checked every box that we needed it to check. And then the delivery, we knew the delivery, the content was going to captivate students. Because it was real life. It was what I would say on a level that a typical high school student was going to relate to.”
– Doug Kittle, Aurora High School Principal
Educator Interviews
Learn how Dana Thompson, a lifelong educator, and coach, incorporates Find Your Grind in the classroom daily as his core curriculum. Dana embraces the Find Your Grind curriculum, ethos, and message to help students capture their passion.
Principal Doug Kittle has been around. He has seen it all. As the education landscape changes, specifically in how high schools help students navigate their post-secondary path, Find Your Grind has been the curriculum he relies on to support his staff in meeting the new demands. For Doug, it is all about helping students find their why.
Student Interviews
Since the inception of Find Your Grind, our focus has always been on putting students first. From the content we deliver to how we engage learners through gamification and bite-sized activities, our goal has been to provide an experience that meets Gen Z where they are, how they like to consume content, and inspires them to be lifelong learners. Why? The result we measure success by is how Future Ready a student feels.
Welcome to the Find Your Grind Student Voices series, where we will highlight a student’s perspective on the Find Your Grind learning journey.
“I have never participated in a program like Find Your Grind. At first, I was told it would help us find ourselves and look at future careers, but I wasn’t sure what it would look like. However, it has really opened my eyes to all the things I should consider while thinking about my future.” Read more of Savannah’s feedback here.
One of the primary benefits of a personalized learning journey is that it helps students better understand themselves now. For Jayke, a 9th-grade multi-sport athlete, her entire life has been about competition. Naturally, she thought her lifestyle pathway would be centered around being a competitor. Read more to see her how perspective has changed.
When Kooper first started Find Your Grind, she was like most students when starting something new – reluctant, hesitant, and assuming it would be just one more thing she had to do in class. Once she immersed herself in the experience, her opinion quickly changed. Click here to learn more about Kooper’s experience!
Being Future Ready is much more than only understanding the career title or post-secondary direction a student might pursue. The ability to feel confident and understand your natural strengths and skills are critically important for students to feel ‘ready’ to take on their life journey. Learn more about Emily’s journey here.
Our favorite feedback from educators is when we hear real stories of classroom engagement and magic moments with their students about where they would like their lives to go. It is even better feedback when it is shared by the students themselves. Click here to learn more about the twin’s experience.
