My favorite activity, in addition to teaching, is being a local chapter adviser for Future Business Leaders of America. This co-curricular organization allows business education to extend outside my classroom as Aurora FBLA members work to organize and carry out community service projects as well as prepare for individual and team competitive events at the state and national level. Members consistently report their involvement in FBLA is fun, educational and rewarding.
Emerging Business Trends
A fun course to teach and a fun course to take! Some units stay the same, but much of the content changes every year. As a teacher I love the challenge of keeping up with changes in business, the economy and government regulations that affect both. It challenges me learning all the time!
Students will complete business ethics coursework, but most of the content is learned through the study, preparation and presentation of business ethics case studies. This is an effective and interesting way to learn about ethical dilemmas in business.
Click here for an introduction to business ethics and to learn about the ethics tests we will use.
Students will prepare resumes and cover letters to use in conjunction with online job applications and traditional job searches. Students will also hone their resumes and application letters for use with scholarships as that is closely related and very timely for them.
Students will build a website to create a personal electronic portfolio to recap their high school academic and extra-curricular activities. The website will also include their college plans (or other plans after graduating) and information about the career they are planning to pursue.
Click here for an outline of the information to be included in your E-Career Portfolio.
Students will study the impact of our global society on American businesses and complete a project to learn about the unique business practices of countries around the world.
Assignment #1 — How is your geography knowledge? Label as many continents and countries as you can in 8 minutes.
Assignment #2 –– After choosing one country to research, students will complete a comprehensive project of how to successfully conduct business in that country.
Many topics in business are not completely “black and white”. For instance, some citizens believe the passage of The Affordable Care Act or Obamacare will have a positive effect on businesses and the American economy while others believe the opposite.
Topics discussed will depend on what is currently making headlines in business and the economy.
In this unit, students will be assigned a topic to research. They will collect information which supports both sides of the argument and present their findings with their ultimate conclusion.
Click Here to view the project requirements.
MGT & Leadership
This is a course that covers leadership principles, the functions of management and Parliamentary Procedure basics. We use the Habitudes curriculum for part of the leadership unit and also some John Maxwell materials. The Parliamentary Procedure basics are taught utilizing class participation.
Students learn the art of self-leadership through Habitudes images. Developed by Tim Elmore, Habitudes teaches leadership principles through the use of images.
Students learn the art of leading others through Habitudes images. Developed by Tim Elmore, Habitudes teaches leadership principles through the use of images.
This unit of study teaches the basic principles of Parliamentary Procedure in a fun, interactive environment.
Understanding basic principles of Parliamentary Procedure will enable students successfully lead or participate in all kinds of meetings from stockholder’s meetings to civic or church meetings. Nearly all groups use Parliamentary Procedure to conduct their business in a orderly fashion.
Students will identify the similarities and differences between leadership and management. They will study and apply the basic core functions of management, learn the levels of management and different types of management styles.
Technology Classes
Aurora High School offers a number of technology classes. Mrs. Jensen teaches Computer Applications II and IT Fundamentals. Mr. Thompson teaches Computer Applications I and Mrs. Hixson teaches Computer Applications III.
This project-based, one-semester course uses Microsoft Office 2013 to teach advanced principles of Word, Excel and beginning principles of Access and Publisher. Take this class to become certified a Microsoft Office Specialist in Word and Excel.
MICROSOFT OFFICE 2013
Students in Computer Applications II at Aurora High School have an exciting opportunity to test and become Microsoft certified as a Microsoft Word and Excel Specialist. Aurora High School is a certified testing center, so testing is completed at school at no charge.
In addition to learning advanced features of Word and Excel in this class, students also get an introduction to Access and Publisher.
This one-year course provides a unit in PC hardware, networking, HTML, CSS, and beginning JavaScript.
Click this link to learn about top IT technology jobs that are in demand.
UNITS OF STUDY
IT Fundamentals includes three major units:
Introduction to Programming
Networking Fundamentals
PC/Device Hardware
FBLA
Mrs. Jensen has been a Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) adviser at Aurora High School since 2000. The chapter was chartered in 1973 and is one of the strongest student organizations in the school.
Aurora FBLA is proud of its tradition of excellence in competitive events at both the state and national levels. Aurora members have also provided leadership to Future Business Leaders of American by serving as state officers and national officers.
Learn more about FBLA by visiting the National FBLA website and the Nebraska FBLA website.
