Next Steps Pathways building continues to take shape off Jamaica Avenue and 70th Street South, in Cottage Grove. Once complete, the new expansion will allow Next Steps to move and expand from its previous campus near Highway 61 onto a much larger one, construction beginning in July of last year after the district purchased the former site from “Light the Way Church” for $1.7 million in Sept. 2024, approved with motion by school board member Melinda Dols and seconded by Ryan Clarke.
Providing transition services for students ages 18 to 22 with a current Individualized Educational Plan (IEP), Next Step Pathways helps students work on real-world skills as these relate to employment, post-secondary education, and independent living. Students at next steps have the opportunity to explore work environments and have a variety of work experiences, helping them develop the skills to be successful employees. Next Steps focuses on community based instruction to give students what it describes as “authentic and relevant learning opportunities.”
Included in the Next Steps Pathways expansion at Jamaica and 70th Street will be a 9,000 square foot addition to the present building, the finished expansion featuring a culinary lab, maker space and horticulture learning lab, as well as work-based learning experience spaces. Also included in the Next Steps building will be outdoor learning spaces and gardens for students to utilize.
Move-in for the new building is projected for this summer.