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Electives Courses

Spring 2025

Fellowship Hour (12-12:55 PM)

First Hour (1-1:55 PM)

Artificial Intelligence

Teacher: Tiffany King

Class Fee: $2

Students will learn the history of AI, what artificial intelligence is and how it is currently being used. The class will also cover ethical implications of the technology, how it's impacting jobs and education, what humans can do that AI can't, and more. 

The Brand Lab: Create, Design, Launch

Teacher: Caroline Zanni

Class Fee: None

In this engaging and hands-on class, student entrepreneurs will embark on a creative journey to develop and refine their own unique brands. Participants will have the opportunity to create a comprehensive brand identity, encompassing elements such as the brand name, logo, fonts, colors, message, mission, and tone of voice. By leveraging tools like Canva, students will design visually appealing content that resonates with their brand's essence. Additionally, the course will cover the foundational aspects of website building using Squarespace, equipping students with the skills needed to establish a professional online presence. As part of their brand development, students will craft a detailed avatar of their ideal customer, allowing them to tailor their marketing strategies effectively. Through exploring various marketing tools and techniques, students will gain a well-rounded understanding of how to engage their target audience and grow their entrepreneurial ventures. This class promises to be a dynamic and informative experience, empowering students to bring their brand visions to life.

Career Explorations

Teacher: Tiffany Parsons

Class Fee: $10

We’ll kick off the class by taking some personality and career testing to get students thinking about their strengths and God given gifts.  From there, we’ll learn from guest speakers about their occupations, the way they serve their community, and what led them to their career.  We’ll focus on careers that might be unknown, uncommon, or have interesting training paths.  The goal of this class is to open students’ eyes to new possible avenues they themselves might want to explore.  $10 material fee, as we’ll use these funds to give our career guests thank-you gifts.

Character Development and Scene Study

Teacher: Esther Neel

 Class Fee: $5

In this class, students will explore the fundamentals of character creation and development through the study and performance of monologues and scene work. We’ll dive into techniques that help uncover a character's motivations, emotions, and backstory, emphasizing how to bring authenticity and depth to each role. Students will engage in exercises that build skills in voice, movement, and emotional expression, all aimed at bringing their characters to life on stage. Through collaborative feedback and personalized coaching, actors will learn how to analyze text, make strong choices, and create compelling performances that captivate audiences and showcase their unique artistic voice.

Experiential Learning Through Community Service

Teacher: Elizabeth Lin

Class Fee: None

 

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. I Peter 4:10

Do you want to:

-        Learn by doing? 

-        Impact your community? 

-        Exercise your civic responsibility? 

-        Have a sense of purpose?

 

Service involves community engagement, social responsibility, and civic action – all of which contribute to our communal wellness as individuals, neighbors, and a collective society. Practicing service means cultivating a lifestyle of responsibility, engagement, humility, and reflection with the individuals and communities around us, so we might create a world in service with and for each other.

Service-learning programs involve students in organized community service that addresses needs while developing their academic skills, sense of civic responsibility, and commitment to the community. They will gain experience in leadership, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills, and build community connections and professional networks. 

This course will combine classroom learning with community service projects. Students will engage with service opportunities in our community and around the world by answering the following questions: WHAT needs exist in our community, our country, and across the globe? WHAT has led to this need? WHAT organizations exist to address this situation? HOW can we as students and citizens help? CAN we contribute to change in society to alleviate this need?

We will work with organizations to provide learning and service opportunities to students. Some organizations will be selected by the instructor, but students will have the opportunity to investigate and choose organizations they would like to serve. More than just providing a service to the community, this course will include historical and political context of contributed to the situation.

Second Hour (2-2:55 PM)

The Art of Science and Wellbeing

Teacher: Tiffany King
Class Fee: $2

Unlike traditional psychology, which focuses on what's wrong, the field of Positive Psychology focuses on human thriving and flourishing. This class will teach the PERMA-V model of positive psychology (Positivity, Engagement in life, healthy Relationships with others, Meaning and purpose, Achievement and Vitality). In this class, students will discover and tap into their character strengths, learn to have a growth mindset, learn skills to be resilient in life and more. This class is guaranteed to teach students tools to be happier, to flourish in life and have greater well-being.

Yearbook

Teacher: Tiffany Parsons
Class Fee: $0

*Laptop Required*
The yearbook class is responsible for producing a yearbook that memorializes Bluegrass United for the 2024-2025 school year. This will include individual student photos, teachers, socials, sporting events, and graduation. Students in this class will use Picaboo!, an online yearbook site, to design, layout, and produce the yearbook. Students will work together as a team to make all creative decisions regarding the yearbook in its entirety.
Possession of a quality camera and some photography experience could be beneficial, but not required.
If you’re ready to work hard and also learn both interpersonal and team building skills as well as some tech skills, this is the class for you. *Bringing a laptop to class each week is required.*

Events that Changed the World

Teacher: Cindy Fawcett
Class Fee: None
Throughout history, there have been influential world leaders, wars and catastrophes, inventions, scientific advances, political ideas, etc. that forever changed the world. From the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC to today’s current world news, we will discuss these events and the impact they have made on changing the course of history. No homework.

Crochet and Knitting Social Hour

Teacher: Shannon McElfresh
Class Fee: None

Come and learn a new hobby or partake in one you already know while enjoying fellowship with classmates.
Bring your own projects and have help at your fingertips from the experienced teacher.
The teacher will be available to help students with new techniques or stitches while at class. If you do not know how to crochet or knit, the teacher will suggest a kit with which to begin.
Student will be responsible for all supplies.

BUPAC Musical

Teacher: Joshua Watts and BUPAC Staff
Class Fee: $50 cast/$30 crew (Checks made out to BUPAC Drama)

BUPAC will be performing James and the Giant Peach. Featuring a wickedly tuneful score by the Tony Award-nominated team of Pasek and Paul (The Greatest Showman, Dogfight, Dear Evan Hansen, A Christmas Story the Musical) and a curiously quirky book by Timothy Allen McDonald (Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka), critics rave: James and the Giant Peach is a "masterpeach!"
 
When James is sent by his conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, he discovers a magic potion that results in a tremendous peach... and launches a journey of enormous proportions. Suddenly, James finds himself in the center of the gigantic peach, among human-sized insects with equally oversized personalities, but after it falls from the tree and rolls into the ocean, the group faces hunger, sharks and plenty of disagreements. Thanks to James' quick wit and creative thinking, the residents learn to live and work together as a family. The dangerous voyage is a success, but the adventure takes a whole new twist once they land on the Empire State Building.

Casting is by audition only.  However, students may still register to participate in the production crews during the third hour of electives.

BUPAC Cast, Stage Managers, and Crew Leaders should register for BUPAC during the 2 PM and 3 PM hours of BU Electives.  BUPAC crews will register for BUPAC for the 3 PM hour only. 

Third Hour (3-3:55 PM)

Comics Club

Teacher: Jamie Groover
Class Fee: $10
For fans of superheroes, manga, webcomics, or just old fashioned newspaper funnies, this is a creative course that will explore the basics of how comics are made and published. We’ll go step by step through how to write, draw, color, and letter your own stories. Comics are for everyone, and everyone can make them — even if you think you can’t draw! By the end of the semester I hope to have produced an anthology comic with contributions from the entire class.

Creative Writing

Teacher: Cindy Fawcett
Class Fee: None
Writing can be fun! This class will focus on the creative writing process while emphasizing good sentence structure, correct grammar, and proper punctuation. We will write stories, narratives, advertisements, poetry, and more without anguish or anxiety in a positive environment. All writing will take place in class (no homework). This class is open to all students whether you have written award winning essays or tremble at the thought of writing a paragraph. No text or class fee required.

The Epistemology Game

Teacher: Tiffany King
Class Fee: $2
Epistemology is the investigation of distinguishing justified belief/views from opinion. Students who took Propaganda last year, or Critical Thinking in the fall semester have played this game and requested a class devoted to playing the game. (Those classes are NOT prerequisites to this class. Anyone is welcome.) Learn to think on your feet, challenge your views, have great conversations and more.

BUPAC Musical

Teacher: Joshua Watts and BUPAC Staff
Class Fee: $50 cast/$30 crew (Checks made out to BUPAC Drama)
 

BUPAC will be performing James and the Giant Peach. Featuring a wickedly tuneful score by the Tony Award-nominated team of Pasek and Paul (The Greatest Showman, Dogfight, Dear Evan Hansen, A Christmas Story the Musical) and a curiously quirky book by Timothy Allen McDonald (Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka), critics rave: James and the Giant Peach is a "masterpeach!"
 
When James is sent by his conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, he discovers a magic potion that results in a tremendous peach... and launches a journey of enormous proportions. Suddenly, James finds himself in the center of the gigantic peach, among human-sized insects with equally oversized personalities, but after it falls from the tree and rolls into the ocean, the group faces hunger, sharks and plenty of disagreements. Thanks to James' quick wit and creative thinking, the residents learn to live and work together as a family. The dangerous voyage is a success, but the adventure takes a whole new twist once they land on the Empire State Building.

Casting is by audition only.  However, students may still register to participate in the production crews during the third hour of electives.

BUPAC Cast, Stage Managers, and Crew Leaders should register for BUPAC during the 2 PM and 3 PM hours of BU Electives.  BUPAC crews will register for BUPAC for the 3 PM hour only. 

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