Below are the accounting courses for 2011-2012.  The entire Central High School Program of Studies is available for download. 

Financial Accounting         
5 credits
Grades 9, 10, 11, 12
Accounting is a business course designed to use the “language of business."  Designed for the college-bound business/accounting major, the course is applicable to all students who wish to further their knowledge of accounting as a basis for managerial/personal financial decision-making.   Automated Accounting, Excel, and Internet Activities are integrated throughout the course utilizing the Business Department Computer Labs.  The software is used to record and analyze business transactions as a basis to prepare financial statements.  Financial statement analysis will also be a major focus. Accounting II provides for the study of records kept by corporations.  Areas studied include payroll, bad debts, plant assets, depreciation, inventory valuation, accruals and prepayments, departmentalized and automated accounting, and financial statement analysis.  Computer application projects (such as: Automated Accounting, Excel, and Internet Activities) are integrated throughout the course.  The course is designed for students who wish to increase their knowledge in this field before entering the job market or beginning their college work in accounting or a business related area.  (Students may also pursue further study and experiences in this field for additional credits through CTE-Work Experience.  See course description for further details.) 

College Preparatory Accounting (Honors)      
5 credits
Grades 10, 11, 12
College Preparatory Accounting uses a college-level textbook and is taught at an accelerated pace.  It is intended for students who plan to continue their education in the area of accounting or business administration.  Students will study the accounting cycle and how accounting data impacts business decisions.  Emphasis will be placed on understanding the “why” of accounting as well as the “how”.   Students will study the nature and significance of accounting through recording and summarizing business transactions as related to a sole proprietorship, partnership and corporation.  Students will incorporate computerized accounting throughout the year.  Some of the many areas of study include: financial reporting and the accounting cycle, financial statements and analysis, selling a product or service, inventory and completing the operating cycle, and investments in property/plant/equipment and intangible assets, long term debt financing.  There are plans for this course to be offered in conjunction with Mercer County Community College beginning in the fall of 2011.  Upon satisfactory completion of the course, students will be able to obtain articulated college credits.  Prerequisite:  recommendation of department.  (Students may also pursue further study and experiences in this field for additional credits through CTE-Work Experience.  See course description for further details.)

CTE - Work Experience
5-10 credits
Career and Technical Education (CTE) encompasses a sequence of academic courses that prepare students for postsecondary education and for entry into the competitive 21st century workforce. The Work Experience component is an experiential, supervised activity that encourages students to explore their career interests through paid or unpaid employment, apprenticeships, community service, cooperative education, internships, or school-based enterprises. Students are supervised by the school’s Teacher/Coordinator and are exposed to the sixteen sectors of industry, called NJ State “career clusters,” which include agriculture, construction, business administration, finance, government, health science, hospitality, information technology, law, sales and marketing, engineering and more. The CTE-Work Experience program fosters critical thinking skills, effective communication, financial literacy, and workplace readiness.