Some students take discounted college classes at 18 different high school campuses in Northwest Arkansas, but others don't know they exist.
Cyndi Beltran, president of the NorthWest Arkansas Community College's Student Government Association said she went to assemblies about cyber-bullying and careers as a student at Bentonville High School, but no one explained to her how to jump-start her college career in high school. She took seven Advanced Placement classes to up her grade point average, but didn't know about the college credit until she got her test results back.
AT A GLANCE
What Is Concurrent Enrollment?
Concurrent credit, or dual enrollment, is college class work completed by high school students through programs associated with their schools. Teachers are approved by the college, and students get a college transcript of their credit.
Source: National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships
A student trustee on the college board, Beltran said she didn't know why there were college textbooks in some of her high school classrooms until a presentation during Monday's board meeting.
Students don't take college classes in high school because they don't know their options, she said.
If she would have known she could have taken college algebra in high school, she could have saved time and money, Beltran said. College algebra was a repeat of her pre-calculus class, she said.
"A lot of it is repeating from high school," Beltran said.
Early college experience classes need to be better represented, said Evelyn Jorgenson, college president. College employees will make an effort to get to schools and talk to students and parents about the college option, she said.
The University of Arkansas has an average of 10 students per semester in its concurrent enrollment program, said Suzanne McCray, vice provost for enrollment management and dean of admissions. There is no recruiting effort for the program, McCray said. The university's administration supports Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate classes for high school students.
Many students take Advanced Placement classes in Arkansas. The Arkansas Department of Education pays for teacher training and covers the $89 exam if students take it on schedule with a class. There is no similar financial assistance for high schools offering concurrent college enrollment.
"I don't think that means we should discourage early college experience classes," Jorgenson said.
Students who score a 3, 4 or 5 can get college credit for their Advanced Placement test scores. Grants in some school districts have paid premiums to students and their teachers if they score high.
Arkansas has the lowest number of passing Advanced Placement scores of any state in the nation, according to the 10th Annual AP Report to the Nation. Only 31.2 percent of Arkansas scores qualified students for college credit. The national average was a qualifying score on 57.4 percent of all tests.
Courses through the college will be appear on the student's transcript, said Diana Johnson, executive director of high school relations for NorthWest Arkansas Community College.
"Concurrent credit with a (grade of) 'C' is guaranteed credit. You don't have to take it again," Johnson said.
Most students enroll in concurrent classes in English or algebra, Johnson said. Pea Ridge Business and Manufacturing Academy will offer business and health care classes through the college beginning this fall.
A blended class of concurrent credit and Advanced Placement is taught at West Fork High School, Johnson said.
Nearly 700 students enrolled in more than 3,100 credit hours through the college during the fall semester.
The school's next frontier may be digital, Johnson said. State law will add a digital course requirement for the graduating class of 2018, and the college has applied to be a digital learning provider.
Springdale's school of innovation plans call for students to graduate high school with an associate's degree, and that may increase the demand for concurrent classes, Jorgenson said.
A 60 percent discount on tuition for high school students enrolled in college classes through their high schools this fall was approved Monday by the college board. The amount of the college's fall tuition has not been set.
The main reason students don't take concurrent classes is because of the cost, said Jeni Bradberry, a counselor at Farmington High School. If a student is aiming for No. 1 in the class rankings, he or she will typically opt for the weighted Advanced Placement classes.
Some students will not have the 3.0 grade point average or the ACT score required for college admission. In previous years, some students didn't take the college classes because it would have only been a half-credit toward high school requirements, Bradberry said. State rules changed this fall making the classes worth a full high school credit.
Students who do take concurrent classes might be seniors hunting for an extra credit to take once they've finished up their core classes, Bradberry said.
If a student has to take college biology for his or her college major, they might as well do it in high school, she said.
"Why not get two things at once?" she asked.
The cost of college textbooks also plays a factor, said Robert Moore, assistant superintendent for secondary curriculum and instruction for the Rogers School District. Any discount makes it easier on parents to say yes to college credit.
"NWACC has a vested interest in having our students have access to their school," Moore said.
College administrators said 15 percent of students enrolled through concurrent credit programs attend the school the fall after they graduate. This spring they will recognize 116 seniors who graduated with 12 or more college credit hours and a grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
Early classes set students up for college, Beltran said. One of her friends took regular courses and did well, but did not take the ACT. Her friend scored low in math on her college entrance exam. She had to take two remedial classes, which she paid for, and she received no college credit. It is one reason students drop out of college, Beltran said.
"You don't wanna be lost," she said.
Students need to ask questions, and there should be more support for first-generation college students, she said. Advocacy groups should push students to take college credits in high school as a cost saving measure, Beltran said.
Beltran pays out-of-state tuition. She has a work permit, but fears it could take her 20 years to gain citizenship, and that is too long to wait for college, Beltran said.
"That's my whole life," she said.
NW News on 03/17/2014