This course lays a solid foundation in the physical, earth and life sciences, developing scientific literacy in all students. Students are prepared to use scientific principles and processes appropriately in making personal decisions; to experience the richness and excitement of knowing about and understanding the natural world; and how to engage intelligently in public discourse and debate about matters of scientific and technological concerns. 

520 Biology
Prerequisite: Science (510) or Admissions Committee Approval. Biology provides the student with a general introduction to life around him in all the areas of biology, including lower animal biology, vertebrates, cell biology, biochemistry, and genetics. The course includes lectures and lab work in the classroom. The goal of the course is to prepare students for college work in biology as well as everyday life. Creatures to be dissected are frogs, fish, crawfish, and fetal pigs.

530 Applied Chemistry
Prerequisite: Biology (520). This course is not a college preparatory course. The content covers the basic concepts of chemistry including periodic table, chemical equations and nomenclature, atomic structure, states of matter through practical applications. Throughout the course, usefulness and application of chemistry in everyday life is stressed. Large and small scale labs are an integral part of the course and hands-on activities are frequent.

531 Chemistry
Prerequisite: Biology (520) and Algebra I (312 or 314 or315). This course is a college preparatory course, which covers matter and energy, atomic structure, bonding, the periodic table, mole concept, and the reactions, names and formulas of ionic and molecular compounds, Kinetic Theory, Gas Laws, and Thermo Chemistry. Large and small scale labs are used with each chapter to help the students visualize and grasp abstract concepts.

533 Chemistry IA
Prerequisite:Recommendation of the Biology teacher and A averages in science
and math courses to be determined. This course is an accelerated first year chemistry course which will cover the following topics: chemical formulas, equations and nomenclature, the periodic table, classification of matter, measurements in chemistry, stoichiometry, solutions, gases, thermodynamics, atomic structure, bonding, redox reactions and electrochemistry, kinetics and equilibrium, acid-bases, nuclear and organic chemistry. This is a lab course and requires 5 to 6 hours of homework per week. It is a rigorous fast-paced course for the student with a superior ability in problem solving and algebra. Successful completion of the course will prepare the students for A.P. Chemistry.

534 Chemistry II
Prerequisite: Chemistry (531) with a B or better. This course is a college preparatory course, which covers Aqueous systems, Rates of reaction equilibrium, Acids and bases, Oxidation-Reduction reactions, Electrochemistry, Organic reactions and Nuclear Chemistry. Large and small scale labs are used with each chapter to help the student visualize and grasp abstract concepts. Students who successfully complete this course with a B or better will be eligible to take AP Chemistry. 

532 AP Chemistry
Prerequisite: Chemistry (531) or Chemistry IA (533) and Department Approval. AP Chemistry is designed to be taken only after the successful completion of a first course in high school chemistry. The course requires approximately 6 to 8 hours of homework per week. Topics studied include the structure of matter, kinetic theory of gases, chemical equilibrium, chemical kinetics, and concepts of thermodynamics. Problem solving is an integral part of the course; students will be expected to work independently and in group situations. Successful completion of the AP exam will earn advanced placement and up to eleven semester hours credit at most colleges and universities.

540 Anatomy/Physiology 
Prerequisite: Chemistry (531 or 532 or 533) and B average in previous science courses and/or Department Approval. Anatomy and Physiology is a challenging branch of Biology providing students with an understanding of the structure and functions of the human body. The emphasis of the course is familiarity with physiology in order to understand disease processes and homeostatic mechanisms. The laboratory exercises include a dissection, a video study of human cadaver dissection, a student learning guide, and coloring guides for students.
Workbook: Schmidt-Prezbindowski, Kathleen. Learning Guide for Tortora:
Introduction to the Human Body. Harper Collins College Publishers.

547 Physics
Prerequisite: Chemistry (531 or 532 or 533), Algebra II Analysis (322) or Advanced Algebra & Trigonometry (331), and Department Approval. This is a college preparatory physics course that covers kinematics, force, universal gravitation, momentum & it’s conservation, work, energy, simple/complex machines, thermodynamics, kinetic theory, the states of matter, waves and sound. Labs are a regular part of the course. A firm understanding and ability to use formulas is essential. Problem solving is an integral part of the course; students will be expected to work independently and in group situations.

560 Ecology 
Prerequisite: Biology (520). This course will cover the study of relationships between organisms and their environment. This includes the study of biotic and abiotic factors as well as population dynamics of the different ecosystems in the biosphere. 

570 Environmental Biology
Prerequisite: Biology (520). This course will cover the study of mans’ interaction with the environment. It will include the study of air, water, and land pollution, as well as energy and population issues.