WELCOME!

The Business Education program is diverse, interactive, and exciting!  Business Education offers something for everyone.  The philosophy of the department is to educate its students so that they will be well prepared to participate as employees and consumers in our complex society.  Business Education courses enable students to learn life skills, to acquire technical competence, and to prepare for advanced study in areas related to their academic aspirations.  Business Education is for all students who are going on to school or those going directly to work after graduation.

Our department focuses on students individual career development which makes the Business Education program a practical academic choice for all students at Bellefonte Area High School.

The Business Department has 3 courses that can be taken for college credit, Entrenurealship Mindset, Accounting, and Microsoft Office Specialist.

As a department, we always promote trying business course out to see if something sparks your interest. At PSU, Smeal Business College has a program for high school students to do just that. For more information check out this link.

Students who elect to study business may do so for a variety of reasons.  They may be interested in business education because they want to learn about investments, further develop keyboarding and computer skills, or understand how economic principles apply to life.  They may study business, accounting, word processing, or computer applications, because they intend to go to work immediately after graduating from high school. Some study business to learn the basics of entrepreneurship so they can start their own business.

Still others may have decided that pursuing a college degree in business is their goal so they study business, including courses such as accounting, business and personal law or retailing and marketing at the high school level, in order to prepare for higher education. Whatever the goals of students might be in the field of business, they can identify with the performance expectations and workplace readiness skills acquired in business education courses.

Business Honors: To qualify for Business Department Honors students must (1) have a 93% or better in Personal Finance or Intro to Business (2) have a 93% or better in 2 other Business classes OR be extensively involved with FBLA OR be extensively involved with yearbook. (You must meet the criteria for number one and one aspect of number two.)

**Offerings subject to change

(614) INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS AND LEADERSHIP

1.0 credit

Introduction to Business and Leadership is a great starter course for any student that is interested in any aspect of business. Students going into nearly any career choice, in the field of business or not, can learn valuable information about the way companies are run and skills all employees need. Students will be introduced to marketing, leadership, team-building, economic concepts, product development, social responsibility, international business, human resources, entrepreneurship, and career research. Students will participate in a variety of different projects and real-world simulations to make the class as realistic as possible. Students will join the Future Business Leaders of America (membership fee assistance available) and compete in the regional competition. Students will also complete a self- chosen service learning project to help their community and build leadership skills.

(622) ACCOUNTING 1 (CHS Credit available)

1.0 credit (1.07 Weight)

Suggested Prerequisite:  10th, 11th, or 12th grade status.

This course provides a competency-based approach in which the fundamental accounting cycle is taught. Accounting 1 concentrates on the recording of business transactions for small service-type businesses and merchandising businesses. Workbook problems and a business simulation project are used for a practical approach to learning. Included are journals, ledgers, cash payments, sales, accounts receivable and payable, business reports, payroll records, and taxes.

Accounting 1 is NOT just for business students. This is a must-have course for academic students who plan to further their education in a variety of professional areas in the business field. For non-academic students this course offers practical, everyday understanding of personal record keeping. This class will also teach you how to communicate well, pay attention to details, improve problem solving abilities, listen well, and interpret data. We will be using the Accounting Textbook, workbook pages, projects, and computer software in order to learn about Accounting.

Students that take this course can also apply simultaneously to receive Seton Hill credit.  More information will be forthcoming when you apply and are accepted into this course.

(22210PFS) (Personal Finance)

0.5 credit

Suggested Prerequisite: 11th or 12th grade status.

This is a great course for life! Topics include personal and career financial planning, money management, consumer purchasing and credit, savings and investing, retirement planning and personal income tax preparation. Students will learn how to create budgets, maintain a checking account, reconcile their bank statements, analyze credit card offers, keep themselves out of debt, and compute their own income taxes by hand and by using tax software. Be smart about your own money; learn how to handle your personal finances!

In this class we focus on the many aspects of finance. We look at what it takes to budget your money and make smart and savvy investment decisions for now and the future. We also look at basic tax filing and the importance of keeping a positive credit report and what rights we have as consumers in today’s market. Lastly, we focus on the housing and insurance markets and what it takes to find the right plan to fit your financial situation.

(12054BL) BUSINESS AND PERSONAL LAW (May be offered 2027-2028 School Year)

1.0 credit

Suggested Prerequisite:  10th, 11th, or 12th grade status.

Know your rights. Debate. Think about deep questions as to what is right, what is wrong and what is legal. All legal issues arise out of life experiences. These issues affect consumers, employees, business owners, and ordinary citizens. This course introduces students to legal terminology, rights, responsibilities, and remedies. Specific areas covered include sources of law, criminal law, trial procedures, contracts, marriage and divorce, home-buying, warranties, and ethics. This course provides a solid foundation for those who are interested in careers in law, law enforcement, business, or political science. A mock trial simulation may be utilized.

(618) ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET (CHS Credit available)

.5 credit (.7 Weight)

Suggested Prerequisite:  10th, 11th or 12th grade status.

When people think of Entrepreneurship, most think of inventing a product and starting a new business. The Entrepreneurial Mindset is about so much more. It's learning a way of thinking that encourages risk-taking and conquering challenges. It's figuring out how to solve a problem when there isn't a set of directions already in place because you are venturing into new territory. You can use the skills developed in Entrepreneurial Mindset no matter what career you choose. In this class, you will learn techniques for bringing creativity into everything you do, how to spot opportunities, how to find a market for your ideas, how to turn an idea into reality and how to pitch that idea to get others to get on board. 

An optional benefit to this course is that students can also apply to earn college credits from Seton Hill University.

(155) ADVANCED DESKTOP PUBLISHING 

1.0 credit

Do you want to leave your mark on this school? Do you want to learn skills that will allow you to own your own business and be more creative? If so, then sign up for Advanced Desktop Publishing. This course focuses on the student production of the yearbook. Students will be required to take photos of school events and activities, write captions for photos, and interview school personnel and students for short messages on pages. Students will learn camera, interview, graphic design, as well as photo editing skills. Students will use basic or advanced features of Photoshop to adjust or crop photos. It is recommended that students enroll in Advanced Desktop Publishing for multiple years. Students will be required to take photos of school events and activities, write captions for photos, and interview school personnel and students for short messages on pages. Managing a yearbook project requires many skills, teamwork and a fair amount of time outside the classroom. Our goal is to make it fun and rewarding for everyone involved.  If you want your yearbook to be the best ever, then enroll. We need creative students just like you!

(651) COMPUTER APPLICATIONS:  (Word Processing, Presentation, Spreadsheets & Database Management) (May be offered 2027-2028 School Year)

0.5 credit

This course combines two popular computer applications that are available for home or office – spreadsheets and database management. Spreadsheets are the second largest selling business software. Database management helps track information for businesses and individuals. Each part of this course helps students with other courses throughout high school.

This course is intended to teach our students the basics of different software packages that are included in Microsoft Office. We will be spending most of the semester learning Microsoft Excel (spreadsheet software) and the remainder of the semester learning Microsoft Access (database management software) as well as other web software.

In the spreadsheeting part of the course we use Microsoft Excel. Spreadsheeting enables students to design, create, calculate, edit, save, retrieve, modify, analyze, and print graphs, charts, and reports. The database component of the course is taught using Microsoft Access.  Students will approach the course as if they were the database developer. This approach to learning about database management will allow students to better understand someone else’s database design, as well as to better design their own database.  We will also touch on Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and different web 2.0 tools that can help students in everyday life that are exciting and free to use online.

(10110) MICROSOFT OFFICE SPECIALIST (MOS) CERTIFICATION (CHS Credit available) (May be offered 2027-2028 School Year)

.5 credit (.7 Weight)

Suggested Prerequisite: Successfully passed Computer Applications

The Microsoft Office Specialist course is set up to allow students to further their knowledge in the workings of Excel and Word. This course provides an opportunity for students to not only master the skills necessary to work these programs, but to become certified in those specific areas. Students will be expected to take the MOS certification test at the end of the class. If they pass, students will not only graduate with a diploma from Bellefonte, but also specific certifications that will allow them to be more marketable at both the collegiate and professional levels. Overall, each student should show mastery of advanced skills in both Word and Excel before taking the exam. Microsoft PowerPoint and Access will also be covered at a basic and intermediate level, so that students can use those platforms in their future. PowerPoint is a presentation software that is widely used for lectures and presentations in the classroom and in the corporate world. Many people use PowerPoint and other presentation software to aid their presentations. Access is a database software that tracks information for businesses or individuals. We use many databases in everyday life, and are part of many as well. You can also take this class for college credit through Seton Hill. Please contact a business teacher for more information.

Students that take this course can also apply simultaneously to receive Seton Hill credit.  More information will be forthcoming when you apply and are accepted into this course.

(12103) Become a Millionaire (Investing and Saving) (May be offered 2027-2028 School Year)

0.5 credit

Suggested Prerequisite: Personal Finance

Students will understand the basics of investing and saving and the different vehicles for doing so. Students will learn the importance of saving and investing and how they can help achieve their life, family and retirement goals. Students will learn how to evaluate, buy, sell and trade various investment choices including stocks, bonds, ETFs, REITs, cryptocurrencies, mutual funds, index funds and commodities. Students will learn about the New York Stock Exchange, the NASDAQ as well as international stock markets. 

Current events will be utilized to connect news to fluctuations and speculation in the world’s markets. Participation in local and national stock market competitions will add some competition and fun and students will be invited to attend the Pennsylvania Council on Financial Literacy’s presentation at Penn State in May. Students will learn about the importance of saving, how compound interest works and pros and cons of various savings options. Students will gain an understanding of 401ks, roth and traditional IRAs and steps to enroll in these programs.

(12161) RETAIL MANAGEMENT and MARKETING 

0.5 credit

The overview of management focuses on the manager’s role and function, decision-making, ethics, and managerial oversight. Students will develop an understanding of concepts associated with developing marketing plans for different retail establishments. Through this they will be able to analyze why businesses engage in different activities and how they utilize collected information to improve upon customer experience and product quality and availability. Students will also know how to start a business and all the costs associated with that. Students will plan and look at the risks associated with different industries. Students will learn SWOT analysis about the product and what target market they are looking for. Students will learn about competitors and using competitive advantage and social media be able to market their product to the public effectively. Students will also look at the distribution of the product and the financial side of running a business.

(12152) INTRODUCTION TO MARKETING

0.5 credit

Introduction to Marketing is a dynamic course designed to give students a foundational understanding of how products, services, and ideas are promoted and sold in today’s global marketplace. Students will explore key marketing concepts such as target markets, branding, consumer behavior, market research, and the marketing mix (product, price, place, and promotion). Through hands-on projects, case studies, and creative activities, students will learn how businesses attract and retain customers while making ethical and socially responsible decisions.

Emphasis will be placed on real-world applications, including the use of digital and social media marketing, teamwork, and communication skills. By the end of the course, students will develop and present a basic marketing plan, preparing them for future study in business, entrepreneurship, or related careers.