As Massachusetts looks to expand statewide high school graduation standards, Belmont Public Schools is building out its pathways program to offer students a varied route to cross the graduation stage.
Proposed graduation requirements released by the state in June would have students complete a specific program of courses, present a senior capstone project, and more. They would also require students to complete financial and artificial intelligence literacy milestones.
Belmont High School (BHS) already adheres to — and in some cases surpasses — the state requirements for graduation. For example, seniors already present a capstone project or portfolio, a requirement that likely wouldn’t be rolled out at the state level for another year.
“Teachers spend time developing [capstone] skills, particularly in junior year, but throughout high school, so that students are not facing something completely unfamiliar by their senior year,” said Belmont High School Principal Isaac Taylor.
Taylor added that the district is in the early stages of assessing the potential requirements and how courses and curriculum at Belmont may need adjustment. However, the district also plans to keep expanding its educational offerings.
“All of those other enduring competencies, collaboration, teamwork, I believe consensus building is a really important skill for people to have, particularly in a world where there’s so many different viewpoints and ideas,” Taylor said.
Funded through the state fiscal year 2026 supplemental budget, the district brought on Dan O’Brien this year to lead the multiple pathways program. O’Brien was previously the vice principal at BHS.
The program, which has been in development for several years, will expand opportunities for students to build career-readiness skills in certain industries, namely business and finance, and health sciences. Belmont is applying to become a designated innovation pathways school with the state. If accepted, Belmont would join more than a dozen schools across Massachusetts.
“[It’s] an opportunity for us to build something here that’s going to just continue to enhance what we already do really well, and then provide opportunities for students that maybe a traditional sort of college prep programming is not necessarily something that they’re working towards or works best for how they learn,” O’Brien said.
The two pathways include four courses, as well as 100 hours of a capstone project or work-based learning, according to O’Brien. Students will have the opportunity to learn through an internship or other hands-on experiences.
“That’s a big priority for the district and certainly for the high school,” Taylor said. “We already have an extremely robust program here, and I believe that the pathways will further strengthen that and create different opportunities for many of our students.”
Though the program is designed to build career-ready skills for students, O’Brien said the pathways thread into the school’s traditional education model as well.
“I think we’re very fortunate that our students are super motivated and the vast majority go on to college and have opportunities for success there. This just gives us another tool in our toolkit for students, and particularly for students who may not necessarily know yet what they want to study or whether college is the right fit, or whether they want to go into the workforce, and I think being able to have that flexibility is going to be really important, and especially as the workforce changes,” he said.
The school plans for the pathways program to officially launch next fall.
