Cool Schools: Littleton pathways campus gives students more ownership in their education

LITTLETON, Colo. — The EPIC Campus in Littleton Public Schools is providing more learning opportunities for high school students. Explorative Pathways for Innovative Careers (EPIC) was launched last year and offers seven different pathways for students to learn more about a particular learning area. 

High schoolers choose from aerospace, business and entrepreneurship, computer science, construction trades, health sciences, future educator and natural resources to help them focus on what they what to do after graduation. EPIC Campus is in its second year and is where principal Travis Amonson believes the students can learn more about themselves.

“They have choice in their education,” Amonson said. “It’s a difficult decision for students when you hear someone say, ‘What do you want to do when you grow up?’ as a sophomore or a junior so this is an opportunity for them to try some different things.”

The campus is located across the street from Littleton High School in an area that looks more like a college campus than a traditional high school. Students come to the EPIC Campus for a portion of their school day, then return to their high schools for the remainder of the day. The campus gives students a chance to earn college credit, industry certifications, concurrent enrollment and work-based learning opportunities in industry fields they’re interested in.

“We have a ton of industry involvement, a ton of community involvement and our district support is off the chart, so it’s been wonderful to sit back and watch,” Amonson said. “Our goal is to really meet students and families where they are, figure out what is the best next step for that student.”

The campus is partnered with industries like Lockheed Martin, Craig Hospital, Informatica and Denver Botanic Gardens. Students are taught by industry professionals in the classroom and through internships.

“We’re going to have them out working with people in that field so they can get a true sense of what that work is like,” Amonson said. “And those internships can lead to summer jobs.”

Amonson said they are seeing positive results.

“We have high attendance percentages,” he said. “They say they want to be over here for a particular reason, they want to learn more about a certain area and so they’re invested in that.”

Students like Littleton High School senior Luca Rodriguez, who walks across the street to attend classes on the campus. Even though he’s not sure what he wants to do after high school, Rodriguez said the campus will help him narrow down his choices.

“I’m kind of focusing on the E of EPIC, that exploration where I really don’t know what I want to do but I know that there are things that I want to try,” Rodriguez said. “Last year I tried plant science and ecology, and I loved it. This year, I’m doing a total 180 and I’m doing real estate.”

The campus offers one of the only real estate classes in the state where students can earn their certification to become a realtor as soon as they turn 18 and pass the Colorado real estate license exam. Rodriguez believes opportunities like this will also help him in the long run.

“It’s so valuable to me to be able to try these out when I’m 16 and 17 and not later in my life,” Rodriguez said. “I can do it now where I’m in public school, I’m not paying a dime for it rather than go to college, take a real estate class and realize that it’s not for me there and I just paid for a semester.”

EPIC campus also serves students from Englewood and Sheridan high schools. Amonson believes that even though the campus is only in its second year, the positive feedback will continue to grow.

“There’s lots of opportunities out there that students and their parents may not know about,” he said. “We want them to make an educated decision based on post-secondary (and) what they want to do.”

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