Prairie students explore careers under Superintendent Doug Wheeler’s leadership

CEDAR RAPIDS — Superintendent Doug Wheeler is leading the design of college and career readiness programs and has overseen the passage of two bond referendums and voter approval of extending a capital projects levy in his six years at the College Community School District.

But at the end of the day, Wheeler, 46, first and foremost sees himself as a teacher, he said.

He began as superintendent of the 5,800-student school district in southern Cedar Rapids in 2018. Now, he’s six years into the job he hopes to retire from someday.

“I’ve been blessed with having great staffs everywhere I’ve been. Any accomplishment I talk about is shared,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler previously spent four years as superintendent of the Saydel Community School District near Des Moines. But he has his sights set on College Community, and when the job opened up, he leapt at the opportunity.

“I admired this place from a distance for a while before I applied,” Wheeler said. “It was the top district if the job came open — whether it was a convenient time for me or not, I would apply for it. We’ve really got a great community, great students and our staff here is so hardworking.”

The district serves students in parts of Linn, Johnson and Benton counties, including southwest Cedar Rapids, Ely, Fairfax, Shueyville, Swisher and Walford. Wheeler is paid $238,908 a year to lead it.

He said the biggest stress of his job is, “How do we make decisions that keep it a great place and make it an even better place?”

College and career readiness

College and career readiness programs are one way the College Community School District is personalizing the student learning experience, a part of its 10-year strategic plan that is in its last year.

Next year, school officials will begin gathering input about what worked in the plan and what priorities need to be included in the next strategic plan, Wheeler said.

Many K-12 schools in Iowa — and across the nation — are turning to the college and career learning model to better prepare students for life after high school graduation. The programs expose students to high-demand careers that sets them on a pathway to career and educational success beyond high school.

Wheeler said he doesn’t want Iowa’s largest export “to be our young people.” He wants to equip them with the skills and knowledge to access career opportunities in their communities.

“They may choose to leave, but I want all of our graduates to exit with a plan and know there are opportunities to thrive in the Cedar Rapids area or in Iowa,” he said.

The first of these programs launched in 2020 with Prairie High School’s agriculture pathway, where students explore careers in engineering, veterinary medicine, food science, nutrition and more.

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The school’s medical career pathway is another one Wheeler helped oversee creating. Beginning during the 2022-23 academic year, students at Prairie High were able to take a certified nursing assistant course on campus.

While a similar program is offered through Kirkwood Community College, having the class at Prairie High during the school day removes barriers for some students interested in the program.

Other career pathway programs the district has launched are culinary and teaching. Aerospace is the next frontier for the school’s college and career readiness programs.

The district is planning to partner with The Eastern Iowa Airport and Kirkwood to open a program to students in the 2025-26 school year.

These types of programs introduce kids to career opportunities in the Cedar Rapids area that they are “inspired by” and may “never have thought of before,” Wheeler said.

As the neighboring Cedar Rapids Community School District also prepares to launch college and career pathways, Wheeler said there are “probably some things they’ll be able to offer that we can’t.”

But Prairie’s closeness to Kirkwood’s Cedar Rapids campus is an advantage. On the high school’s campus, the district can offer introductory courses that encourage students to continue to explore through dual-enrollment on the college campus just to the north.

“They’re more willing to take that risk because they know enough about it to want to leave the high school campus and go someplace else,” Wheeler said.

Automotive technology is a great example of that, Wheeler said. “We can offer a great introductory class, but Kirkwood has awesome facilities that we just can’t afford,” he said.

Facility planning

Under Wheeler’s leadership, voters have said “yes” to two school bond referendums.

In March 2020, a $54 million bond issue passed with 85 percent approval to fund construction of a new intermediate building for fifth- and sixth-graders, which was completed last year.

Another project funded by that bond referendum is the renovation of the former Prairie Creek Intermediate building into a 9th Grade Center and Prairie Delta Alternative High School. That project will be completed this summer.

Last fall, voters in the district approved a $43 million school bond referendum that will fund the construction of a swimming pool and wellness center that will be operated by the YMCA.

Construction on the new Prairie Summit YMCA is expected to start early this fall with completion slated for early 2026.

Wheeler said the bond in 2020 helped the district complete some “core needs” for its facilities. The YMCA is a “serious want” that Wheeler said also is a way to give back to the community.

It would include an aquatic center with a competition-size pool with diving and seating for spectators, a recreational pool with a splash pad, a walking and running track, basketball and multipurpose courts and a cardio and weightlifting area.

“We have a growing southwest side. Our amenities on this side of town are still catching up with our growth. This will become a community hub that also provides taxpayers with an amenity where they can walk inside, shoot hoops in the winter,” Wheeler said.

“We’ve built trust that we’re going to use your money responsibly,” Wheeler said. “We’re not going to ask for things that we don’t think are needed.”

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