The Iowa Department of Education announced Monday that it is awarding nearly $4 million to expand career academy opportunities across the state.
Funding will come from the state’s Career Academy Incentive Fund, which helps grow in-demand career and technical education for high school students. Career academies are a specialized partnership program that connects high school work with community college training.
According to a release, 45 percent of high school seniors from the class of 2025 achieved at least one work-based learning experience while in high school.
Northwest Iowa Community College, in Sheldon, is one of the recipients and intends to use the funds to establish a new center in Rock Rapids to serve students from rural school districts.
Additionally, the Sheldon St. Patrick's Catholic School will permanently close at the end of the current school year.
According to a release, there are multiple factors that determined the school’s closure, including low and declining enrollment.
The school has served the Sheldon, Ashton, and Sibley communities for 70 years. It currently has 42 students from pre-kindergarten to eighth grade.
