Alger B. Wilkins High School – Veterinary Assisting Honors

Apr 2026 · 2nd Semester

This course provides instruction for students desiring a career in animal medicine. Topics include proper veterinary practice management and client relations, pharmacy and laboratory procedure, advanced animal care, and surgical/radiological procedures. Applied mathematics, science and writing are integrated throughout the curriculum. Advanced FFA leadership will be infused throughout the curriculum to develop the student's ability to work with the public. All aspects of this course will feature hands-on skill sets designed to enhance experiential learning. English language arts, mathematics, and science are reinforced. Work-based learning strategies appropriate for this course are cooperative education, internship, mentorship, service-learning job shadowing and supervised agricultural experience. FFA competitive events, community service, and leadership activities provide the opportunity to apply essential standards and workplace readiness skills through authentic experiences. Students who wish to take the Veterinary Assisting Exam developed by Texas Veterinary Medical Association to be a Certifi ed Veterinary Assistant (CVA) Level 1 should complete an additional 500 hours of supervised agricultural experience (SAE) during their three animal science courses. Two hundred SAE hours focus on the care and management of animals; will be substantiated by records and conducted under the direct supervision of the agricultural teacher. Hours may be earned any time during the year including summer months. An additional 300 hours of supervised agricultural experience (worked based learning) will be conducted as licensed veterinarian or certifi ed veterinary technician who will attest that participating students have mastered a standard set of skills used in animal medicine as identifi ed by the cooperating teacher. Hours may be earned any time during the year including summer months. Note: Course enrollment limited to 15.