GETTING A HEAD START

New initiative brings college courses to high school students

or many students, the traditional path to success is to finish high school, go to college, and enter the workforce. However, not all students want to pursue that traditional path – or can’t. Some face financial barriers to a college education, others have learning challenges that make traditional education difficult, and others are interested in a direct path to the workforce that doesn’t require college.

As a district committed to serving all students, Durham Public Schools recognizes the need for alternate pathways for students. Through a partnership with Durham Technical Community College, the district gives high school students the opportunity to take college-level courses so that they might graduate with a high school diploma and potentially an associate degree or a professional certificate.

“Students can get a head start on where they want to go–a head start on higher education, a head start on a career,” says Dr. Julie Pack, the executive director for Career and Technical Education at DPS. “Also, the research says that students who graduate with college credit persist in post-secondary education at a higher rate because they’re more prepared for what they’re likely to encounter on a college campus.”

She added that the skills these students learn help make them better college students and better employees. In the past, students who wanted to participate in this program had to go to one of the district’s cooperative innovative high schools: J.D. Clement Early College, Middle College High

School, the City of Medicine Academy, or the Durham School of Technology. Depending on which school students attended, they may have had to arrange their own transportation to take classes at Durham Tech, which could be a barrier for some.

This year, a pilot program was started at Riverside High School in which Durham Tech instructors teach in its classrooms. The district hopes to expand this model to other high schools.

Tuition is free for these college classes through the College and Career Promise (CCP) program offered by the state. However, students must pay for their own books, which can cost hundreds of dollars. A private donation of $50,000 from Marcia Angle and Mark Trustin to the Durham Tech Foundation is being used to help cover the cost of books to help more students participate.

“We have seen huge momentum in high school students trying to take advantage of this opportunity and to save tuition,” says Dr. Oluwunmi Ariyo, the director of College Recruitment and High School Partnerships at Durham Tech. Officials hope that removing barriers and creating more awareness of the program will result in even greater participation, Ariyo says. Other initiatives being considered include providing transportation to Durham Tech’s campus or offering some classes online.

The goal between DPS and Durham Tech is to get more than 500 students to graduate each year with either an associate degree or a workforce credential like a diploma or certificate. Some of the more popular programs that students choose include the community Spanish interpreter certificate, the cybersecurity certificate, and EMS certification – all of which can be completed within one year. Welding is also a popular choice, and Ariyo says there is always a waitlist.

Ariyo says that officials are also working to create apprenticeship programs to give students hands-on experience.

The changes are resulting in real growth for the partnership. Ariyo says that about 900 students were enrolled through the CCP in the fall, which was about a 23 percent increase. She says that even more students are expected to enroll in the spring.

The most popular option for students is to complete the associate degree, which students can use to start working or to transfer to a four-year college, saving them the first two years of tuition.

Kelsey Kusi, a senior at Middle College High School, plans to complete her associate degree through the program and then potentially transfer to UNC Charlotte and pursue a degree in biochemistry. She either wants to pursue a career in the production of medicine or in the study of genetically modified foods.

Kusi says she likes the flexibility of the open campus policy, allowing her to come to class and leave as her schedule permits, as well as the access she has to Durham Tech resources, such as tutoring and professional connections from her professors.

“Because you’re a Durham Tech student, you get access to everything they offer and not just what you would get at a regular high school,” she says.

Zayveon Davis, a fellow Middle College senior, adds that there are smaller class sizes, more diversity in the classroom, and programs for work study.

“The college classes are definitely a lot more work,” he says. “Something that you’re forced to do when you start taking college classes is work on your time management. There are a lot of lessons you would learn at a four-year college that I’m learning at Durham Tech. I don’t have to worry about doing that when I’m at a four-year college with all that scholarship money on the line.”

Davis wants to pursue a bachelor’s in business administration at N.C. A&T University, then a graduate degree.

Crystal Taylor-Simon, the principal at Middle College, says that on average, students at the school complete about 40 transferrable credits. She says that about a third of the graduating class receives a degree or certificate, and about 70 percent of students transfer their credits to a four-year program.

Middle College is housed on Durham Tech’s campus, so students are fully immersed in the college experience when they arrive in the 11th grade. Students need at least a 2.5 grade point average to be admitted, and their attendance and discipline records are reviewed.

Taylor-Simon says that students get more individualized attention in the program because there are smaller class sizes, and they learn skills that position them for success later, such as how to advocate for support, how to work with professors, and how to craft professional emails.

“It’s a learning experience inside the classroom, but also outside the classroom,” she says.