Back to School Night
Concurrent Enrollment · Dr. Jason Cross · Room 162
About Your Teacher
I love these kids. I want them to be successful, and I work long hours to make sure I'm offering the best courses I possibly can.
College Credit
This concurrent-enrollment course carries three Arapahoe Community College credits and may apply toward an Associate of Arts in Business or selected Business, Accounting, and CIS certificate pathways.
Students complete college-level readings, discussions, case studies, and written work — meeting both Ponderosa High School expectations and ACC's academic standards.
College credit is earned through successful completion of the course per ACC requirements. Students are responsible for monitoring their own progress.
What This Class Is About
Students study how businesses operate within the American economic system and a connected global economy — ownership, entrepreneurship, management, marketing, finance, accounting, human resources, operations, law, ethics, and social responsibility.
The course is appropriate both for students considering business careers and students who simply want a stronger understanding of markets, money, and employment.
Classroom Culture
Challenge Accepted. Do Hard Things.
Be Here. Give Effort. Ask for Help.
Phones go in the numbered classroom holder at the start of every class and stay there until dismissal. Headphones and earbuds aren't worn during class.
This isn't about punishment — research consistently shows a phone's mere presence drains working memory, even unused. This policy protects concentration so students can actually learn.
Business Etiquette
Business etiquette is explicitly taught, practiced, and graded throughout the course — developed directly from feedback given by professionals across the country. Employers consistently emphasized punctuality, preparation, attention, communication, and responsibility.
These aren't arbitrary classroom rules. They're transferable life and employment skills — and etiquette accounts for approximately 10% of the total course grade.
Artificial Intelligence
AI is encouraged for brainstorming, exploring cases, organizing plans, improving communication, and drafting — as long as the student checks, understands, and can explain the result.
Some quizzes, foundational skill-building, and in-class tasks are AI-off — designed for students to demonstrate what they personally know and can do.
AI isn't the enemy — it's a modern tool students need to learn to use effectively, responsibly, and honestly.
Pace & Workload
This course does not traditionally assign routine homework. Students get substantial class time to complete readings, discussions, and projects — the expectation is that they use it well.
This class moves quickly — the class cannot stop for an individual student to complete work or instruction that was missed previously. A student who's absent returns to a course that's kept moving.
Late & Missing Work
An absence doesn't automatically remove a deadline, especially for long-term projects announced in advance.
Grading
Grades reflect assignments, case studies, simulations, projects, presentations, quizzes, business-planning activities, career-readiness work, FBLA activities, and business etiquette.
Grades are not given. They are earned through hard work, consistent effort, demonstrated learning, and strong attention to business etiquette.
I'm Here to Help
Students can make up missed work, get reteaching, review difficult concepts, revise work, or get help with a major project — in a smaller, quieter setting.
Dr. Jason Cross · Room 162
jcross@dcsdk12.org
Full course syllabus available anytime at drcross.org.
Thank You
Challenge Accepted. Do Hard Things.
Be Here. Give Effort. Ask for Help.