Central Campus has much in store for our students and community in the 24/25 school year. Over the summer we had a lot of activity that is improving the student experience. We added another cooking lab in our Culinary Department and can now have twenty-five more students applying their cooking skills in the kitchen. Our Culinary program has now been able to grow to 180 students. We are thankful to our contractors, operations team, and staff who made this addition possible.

We also had thirty-six summer interns work in our DMPS departments side by side with in-house experts and professionals. Students were paid for forty hours of work over ten weeks in our Agriculture, Construction Trades, Aquarium Science and Marine Biology, Information Technology, Marketing, and Aviation Departments. Des Moines Public Schools is securing funding to keep interns employed throughout the school year. Ensuring our students have ample opportunity to explore careers and apply their skill sets in a real-world environment with professionals is what makes our programming so special. We want all students who attend Central Campus to have the skills, knowledge, and abilities to be successful in the next stage of their lives.

This year we are focusing on work-based learning as a priority. Our teachers are diligently working to connect with industry partners to provide hands-on, real-world learning opportunities so our students are college and career ready. We want to extend an invitation for our annual Open House, to our current and future families, along with our Business Partners. Our Open House will be on Thursday, Oct 17th from 3:30-6:30pm. To our families, we want to thank you for allowing us to be a part of your student's education and for choosing Central Campus.

Tascha Brown

Director of Career and Technical Education and Central Campus

1800 Grand Ave

Des Moines, IA 50309

515-242-7589

Centralcampus.dmschools.org

October 9th - NO SCHOOL, Conference Day

October 10th - NO SCHOOL, PD Day

October 11th - NO SCHOOL, Yom Kippur

October 17th - Central Campus Open House, 3:30pm - 6:30pm

School Hours: 8:35am – 2:55pm

School Doors Open: 8:00am / School Doors Lock: 3:15pm

School Office Hours: 7:45am – 3:30pm

Central Campus will host an Open House on October 17th from 3:30 - 6:30pm for families and the community to view all Central Campus programs in action. We will also have shuttle service to take guests to visit our Ag and Aviation building. Come and check out the COOLEST school in Iowa!

The new paid internship program at Central Campus will make a return next summer and every DMPS high school student is eligible to apply. Check out the Blog and Podcast on the Central Campus website where our students are interviewed about their experiences.

Amanda Odegaard – Business Education

Mrs. Odegaard comes to Central Campus with 13 years of experience in business education and three years of work in industry at Jacobson Companies. Mrs. Odegaard grew up in Onalaska, Wisconsin and graduated from Onalaska High School. She then decided to attend the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse and earned a marketing degree. She moved to Iowa and started working at Jacobson Companies within their transportation department. During that time, she realized she wanted to go back to school to become an educator. She attended night classes at Upper Iowa University and earned her secondary education degree two years later. Soon after, she went back to school again to earn her Master of Education from Viterbo University.

Mrs. Odegaard knew in high school she wanted to be a business teacher, but it took a few turns to get to that point. However, she does give credit to her high school business teachers and many other teachers along the way! Mrs. Odegaard has enjoyed teaching many different classes throughout the years but some of her favorites are marketing and entrepreneurship. The classes allow students to think outside of the box and use their creativity. She has really been able to see her student’s shine!

When Mrs. Odegaard isn’t at school, she is enjoying time with her family. Her husband, 3 boys, and dog. She spends a lot of time at her kids sporting events (baseball, basketball, soccer, and football). She and her family enjoy traveling, they lived aboard for two years in the Netherlands and were able to check several items off their bucket list while there, 9 countries and hopefully many more to go. Last spring break, they went to Colorado and were able to experience an amazing snowfall of 43 inches within 36 hours! One of their favorite things to do, is to spend time in Northern Wisconsin at their family cabin doing all things outdoors but especially four-wheeling and RZR riding.

TECHNOLOGY CAPSTONE

Technology Capstone, or as it will be known after this year, Creative Engineering Design, is an opportunity for students from all around the city, with different skillsets, to come together and tackle real-world STEM challenges. Don’t let the course name fool you; this isn’t just for engineering students. We want welders, mechanics, cooks, artists, farmers, tinkerers, entrepreneurs, aquarists, public speakers, and more! These diverse skill sets will provide better thought-out solutions.

Our students will learn to measure their own abilities and use that information to create well-rounded teams, capable of tackling any project. They will have access to a well-equipped makerspace, allowing them to bring their ideas to life in the form of functional prototypes, of which they will have the potential to sell the intellectual property to our partnering companies. This semester our students are partnering with Make48 and Corteva to solve real-world, local problems. As part of this journey, they will learn about confidentiality, patent law, marketing, and sales, in addition to the invention of a physical product.

We will soon be starting the course requests process for next year’s Central Campus programming. Families who would like to be notified of upcoming timelines, please complete this link.

DMPS students will begin making course requests for 2025-26 with their home high school counselors in October. Central Campus Counselors will also be visiting Central Classrooms to assist students if they wish to continue in their current program for next year (e.g., Culinary I for Culinary II).

The Central Campus Student Ambassador Program is kicking off!
This program offers a fantastic chance for students to develop their leadership skills, earn Silver Cord volunteer hours, and help promote Central Campus's outstanding programs and the future opportunities available for all students to thrive! Those interested should reach out to Anne Horgen, in the Counseling Office.

John Hickling, School Counselor, Student Last Names A-L, John.Hickling@dmschools.org

Anne Horgen, School Counselor, Student Last Names M-Z, Anne.Horgen@dmschools.org

Mary Moua, Registrar, Mary.Moua@dmschools.org

Melissa Nolte, Counseling Assistant, Melissa.Nolte@dmschools.org

Diana Lovan, Future Ready Coach, Diana.Lovan@dmschools.org

Parking permits are only available for out-of-district students and DMPS Seniors who have 4 or more periods at Central Campus. All other students must ride the shuttle bus from their home high school to and from Central Campus. Parking is very limited. Students found parking without a parking permit will be issued a ticket and risk being towed.

PARKING FAQ

Who qualifies for a parking permit?

• All out of district students.

• DMPS Seniors who take 4 or more courses daily at Central Academy and/or Central Campus.

• This can be 4 courses at Academy, Campus or a combination of both programs.

• Those students who qualify are required to complete the Parking Permit Form.

• Qualifying students must bring the following to register for a parking pass:

A valid driver’s license or school permit.
Vehicle registration
License plate number

Where can qualified students park?

• 2020 and 2140 Grand Avenue parking lots are the ONLY parking lots where qualified students with permits are allowed to park.

• The image below provides the location of student parking by GREEN ARROWS - lots G and F.

• Any areas marked with a RED X is off limits to students.

How Do I Get a Parking Permit?

• Parking permits can be obtained at the front foyer desk at Central Campus only.

• Handicap parking is available and can be assigned in other lots.

Safety, Rules, and Etiquette of the parking lot

• Students are only allowed to park in lots F or G, no exceptions.

• Students must always have an official Central Campus parking permit visible.

• Students must park in spaces properly.

• Speed will not exceed 5 mph.

• No burnouts.

• No parking on grass, fire lanes, or sidewalks.

• No parking in handicapped parking without a proper state issued permit. Violators will be ticketed and towed.

• No passengers riding on the outside of the vehicle (example: in the bed of a pick-up truck, on the hood of a car etc.)

• All students who qualify to park in the student parking lots must complete the parking agreement.

• Students who are caught plagiarizing parking passes may be ticketed or towed by the city and will lose future privileges to park on Central Academy and Central Campus property.

• Students found parking in lots other than lots F or G, or who don’t have a parking pass, will be ticketed or towed.

*Violations of any of these rules and expectations can result in the students being ticketed or towed.

Sequence of Consequences for Violating Parking Rule

• 1st violation: warning each semester

• 2nd violation: $20 ticket issued

• 3rd violation: $20 ticket issued, or parking privileges revoked.

• 4th violation: Central Academy and Central Campus may request that the vehicle be towed at the owner's expense.

*These consequences are for the students with parking permits. Vehicles without a school parking permit are subject to the City of Des Moines ticketing and towing without warnings.

Breakfast and lunch are served at Central Campus. Any student who has a class at Central Campus periods 3 and/or 5, will eat at Central Campus. All other students will eat at their home high school. In addition:

• Students may leave the building during their lunch.
• Breakfast and/or Lunch may be cancelled if there is a change to the daily schedule because of weather or other unforeseen situations.

Twitter - @CentralCampusDM

Website - https://centralcampus.dmschools.org

Facebook - Central Campus DSM

Discover Central Campus & discover your future. Eight advance career academies, 33 specialized programs offer multiple pathways to career readiness.

Email: centralcampus@dmschools.org
Website: https://centralcampus.dmschools.org/
Location: 1800 Grand Avenue, Des Moines, IA, USA
Phone: 515-242-7846
Facebook: facebook.com/CentralCampusDSM
Twitter: @CentralCampusDM