AHEAD OF THE CURVE: Freshmen arrive with college credit
Vonda Atchley
The Signal
September has crept its way into our life. The weather is turning cooler, the leaves changing colors and students are heading off to school. They have their back packs, iPads, flash drives and even writing pens and paper, but are they truly ready for the classes awaiting them?
Beginning in Fall 2014, University of Houston-Clear Lake campus will begin accepting freshman and sophomore students. This will be the first time students will be arriving at the campus straight out of high school and they must be ready for college-level classes.
“Currently, the college does not plan on offering any type of remedial courses for incoming students.” said Tim Richardson, director of the Student Success Center.
Many local high schools are already working to ensure their students are prepared for college. Schools such as those located in Galena Park, Channelview and Sheldon ISD’s, “encourage all eligible students to participate in programs such as Advanced Placement Classes, Dual-Credit, and even Modified Early College Academy (MECA) through local junior college San Jacinto College District.
“Local districts have worked hard to develop programs to help students prepare for college,” said Darryl McWhorter, coordinator for academic support and educational research for Galena Park ISD.
The Advance Placement Classes are offered on the high school campus. Students take the classes throughout the school year and prepare for a test. If they pass the test at the end of the year, depending on their score, they may receive college credit, but this route is not guaranteed for credit. Some colleges accept the scores and some do not.
“It does help them with being prepared for college, it just doesn’t guarantee the credit,” said Laurie Patterson, curriculum specialist for Galena Park ISD.
The Dual-Credit program is designed for students to take college-level classes either on the high school campus with peers or on the college campus with other college students. These students sign up for college courses such as English 1301. They are expected to attend class, participate in coursework and complete all assignments as other college classmates are doing. At the end of the semester, those who pass receive both high school and college credit.
Another program the districts are offering, specifically in coordination with San Jacinto College District, is called the MECA program. This has been available for qualifying students since the 2007-2008 school year and is designed for top students on these high school campuses. The students are actually pulled off the regular campus for the entire day except one class. They attend all of their major classes on the college campus. All classes count for high school and college credit. Once these students have completed and passed all the classes, they have earned their High School Diploma and their Associates Degree simultaneously.
“District Coordinators continue to monitor the programs offered watching for additional growth and readiness opportunities for all students in our districts,” McWhorter said.
While there are plenty of opportunities for advanced students to prepare for college, not every student planning to attend college is ready for college level courses while in high school. Some prefer the old-fashioned way of completing high school first, and then moving on to college. Some students need remedial courses to get prepared.
San Jacinto College is the largest feeder college for UHCL campus. Even with the four-year initiative in place, UHCL will continue to work with local community colleges to cultivate the well-established 2+2 transfer plans on which the university was built.
