Issue No. 6, June 2008

IN THIS ISSUE:

1) The Early College High School Frontlines

Graduation Day

2) Early College Students in Their Own Words

• Reality Check
• Senior Year in College
• A Real Second Chance

3) Creating and Sustaining Early College High Schools

• Ensuring College Success: Scaffolding Experiences for Students and Faculty in an Early College School
• Denver’s Southwest Early College Promotes Student Success
• Resources for Schools from the Center for Native Education
• North Carolina New Schools Project Launches New Web site

4) Resources from the Field

• Leveraging Postsecondary Partners to Build a College-Going Culture: Tools for High School-Postsecondary Partnerships
• From High School to the Future: Potholes on the Road to College
• Graduation Rate Watch: Making Minority Student Success a Priority

5) The Policy Page

• Federal Legislation Increases Access to Aid for Early College Students
• On Ramp to College
• Early College Included in Key Texas Plan

6) ECHS in the News: Recent Highlights
 

1) The Early College High School Frontlines

•    Graduation Day

This spring, nearly 3,000 students graduate from early college high schools across the country. Their accomplishments show that more is possible, and that the challenge and supports offered by early college really do make a difference. Local media have reported extensively on this year’s graduates— noting their success with college coursework while in high school and their plans for pursuing further education.

It has been a long road for many of these young people and for the faculty and school partners who continue to refine these new schools. All are paving the way for a growing number of young people who will benefit from the early college experience. We congratulate this year’s graduates and the many adults who’ve contributed to their success.

•    Clement Early College Students Blazing the Trail in North Carolina

As the first early college high school in North Carolina to have a graduating class, Josephine Dobbs Clement Early College High School has set the bar high, with 60 graduates earning college credit or Associate’s degrees along with their diploma, and two thirds of the graduates taking up the offer of North Carolina Central University to stay and complete a four-year degree, free.

Also available at: http://www.nbc17.com/midatlantic/ncn/news.apx.-content-articles-NCN-2008-05-17-0008.html

•    Buffalo Students Earn Both High School and College Degrees

These Buffalo students took a risk five years ago when they decided to enroll in a new school that promised much more than a diploma. With a lot of effort and continuous support from school staff, 24 students of those original students graduated this May from Erie Community College with their two-year degrees —free of charge.

•    Native Culture Highlighted in Effie Kokrine Graduation
     The [Fairbanks, AK] Daily News-Miner, May 31, 2008

“Thirty-six eighth-graders and 11 high school seniors at Effie Kokrine Charter School ended a period in their education during an intimate graduation ceremony in the school’s gymnasium.”

•    Youngstown Early College Students Make History in Ohio
     WYTV, [Youngstown, OH], May 2008

 "Youngstown City Schools have had their share of hardships recent years. But this afternoon a milestone for a fairly school project....the Youngstown Early College.”

•    Six Early College High Schools Celebrate First Graduating Classes  (press release)

“The Foundation for California Community Colleges, a partner of 21 existing Early College High Schools throughout the state, congratulates the first graduating classes of six of these unique institutions, which provide educational opportunities to underrepresented high school students.”

•    Selma Early College High School Grads Inspire Neighboring Community
      The Birmingham [AL] News, May 13, 2008

“A Bessemer group says it is time to offer Jess Lanier High School’s gifted students more innovative teaching—with college credit—through an early college high school similar to the one in Selma.”

•    “Double Diplomas” Becoming Common in Northern Texas
      The Dallas Morning News, May 29, 2008

 “Gus Angulo and Trevelan Belknap are about to graduate from high school with something no one else in their class can claim—a college diploma.”

•   30 Early College Students Awarded Associate’s Degrees at Lorain County Community College
    The [Elyria, OH] Chronicle-Telegram, May 2008

“‘When I first began the program, I was not ready to grow up,’ Early College graduate Madeline Dotson said. ‘As I grew and matured, so did my work and grades. I realized how important an education is and finally began to work hard to reach my goals.’”

•    Valedictorian: Butcher's Son Will Realize Dad’s Wish
      Los Angeles Daily News, June 15, 2008

 “Aaron Aguilar is excited to be at the top of his class and receiving a full scholarship to a prestigious private university."

•    Perris Student to Receive High School Diploma and Associate’s Degree
      The [Riverside, CA] Press-Enterprise, May 30, 2008

 “In 2005, Nuview Bridge began working with RCC’s Moreno Valley campus. Its graduating Class of 2009 will be the first group of students to have four years of both high school and college courses. But Banks beat them to an associate’s degree. And she did it in two years.”

2) Early College Students in Their Own Words

•    Reality Check

KnowledgeWorks Foundation provided students with video cameras and asked them to share their experiences in Ohio’s innovative schools. Students from Dayton Early College High School are among those who created videos about their lives and their schools. Available on YouTube and on the KnowledgeWorks Web site.

•    Senior Year in Early College

In the latest Woodrow Wilson Data & Dialogue newsletter, two students from the University High School of Science and Engineering in Hartford, Connecticut, share journal accounts of their senior year experiences.

•    A Real Second Chance

Two Gateway to College students talk about what led them to this innovative dropout recovery program and how it has changed their lives.

3) Creating and Sustaining Early College High Schools

•    Ensuring College Success: Scaffolding Experiences for Students and Faculty in an Early College School
          Coming Soon:

The Science, Technology and Research Early College School, in partnership with Brooklyn College, has amassed an impressive record in its first five years. STAR’s successful early outcomes are the result of the ambitious goals and careful planning of the school’s founders and its ongoing partnerships. The key to the design is a multiyear transition plan that gradually introduces students to college-going experiences and the demands of college coursework, while providing a wide variety of supports tailored to individual needs.

•    Denver’s Southwest Early College Promotes Student Success

In the most recent issue of Fulfilling Promises, a newsletter from the Middle College National Consortium, Principal Norma Binder reflects on the evolution of Denver’s Southwest Early College. In four years, the school has established a positive, growth-oriented culture, and its students are meeting the challenge of college courses. The first SEC students graduate this spring.

•    Resources for Schools from the Center for Native Education
 
The Center for Native Education has drawn on six years of experience with its network of early colleges for Native youth to compile and share key school design and communications resources that can guide any new or developing early college. This resource compendium includes sample class schedules, a student support menu, student recruitment and application materials, and interactive tools for developing press releases.

•    North Carolina New Schools Project Launches New Web site
    
The new Web site of the North Carolina New Schools Project helps educators and community members spread high school innovation. Teachers and students explain why innovative schools, including Learn & Earn early college high schools, are necessary. And with a “school performance tool,” visitors can look up key performance measures for any high school in North Carolina.

4) Resources from the Field

•    Leveraging Postsecondary Partners to Build a College-Going Culture: Tools for High School- Postsecondary Partnership

A new toolkit from Jobs for the Future is designed for schools and districts seeking to learn from early college high schools and other innovative secondary-postsecondary partnerships. The toolkit draws on key design features of early college schools and walks users through a set of decisions about what type of college partnership activities make sense for their school.

•    From High School to the Future: Potholes on the Road to College

A new report from the Consortium on Chicago School Research follows Chicago Public schools graduates, examining where students encounter obstacles on the road to college. The findings reveal that Chicago students at all levels of qualifications have trouble navigating the daunting process of enrolling in four-year colleges, and they too often default to colleges for which they are overqualified. Consortium researchers spent nearly two years interviewing and tracking the academic progress of 105 students in 3 Chicago high schools. Each of the 10 case studies highlights a student who struggled at a particular point in the postsecondary planning process.

•    Graduation Rate Watch: Making Minority Student Success a Priority

College graduation rates continue to lag for students of color, with some colleges doing much better than others. This new report from the Educator Sector examines the practices of four-year colleges and universities, like Florida State University, that have closed or eliminated the black/white graduation rate gap. The report by Kevin Carey contrasts these promising practices with those of colleges that have paid inadequate attention to closing large graduation rate gaps. Carey points to the solutions that are on the table and makes policy recommendations that would encourage more institutional leaders to act on that knowledge.

5) The Policy Page

•    Federal Legislation Increases Access to Aid for Early College Students

When the President recently signed HR 5715, a bill to stabilize the availability of college loans, it was also a victory for early college students. In 2005, Congress initiated Academic Competitiveness Grants: supplemental financial aid awarded to Pell-eligible students who complete a rigorous high school course of study. However, the statute excluded students “previously enrolled in a program of undergraduate education.” This raised concerns about whether graduates of early college and graduates with dual enrollment experience would be qualified for these grants. HR 5715 makes it clear that “previously enrolled” does not apply to students who were enrolled “as part of a secondary school program of study.”

JFF worked with the National Governors Association and the Alliance for Excellent Education to raise awareness at the federal level about the financial aid needs of early college graduates and dual enrollees. A special thanks is due to Cece Cunningham of the Middle College National Consortium for her leadership in educating key parties about these issues.

•    On Ramp to College

On Ramp to College reviews trends in a growing number of states that see dual enrollment as a way to expand college opportunity—particularly for students who might not be considered college-bound. This guide from JFF shows how dual enrollment can serve as an “on ramp” to postsecondary education for students who are otherwise unlikely to attend college. It also highlights successful state-wide dual enrollment efforts, provides a step-by-step plan for policymakers to create successful programs and assess current approaches, and guides state officials in how to provide a wide range of students with equal access to dual enrollment and make it part of a continuous system for grades 9-16.

•    Early College Included in Key Texas Plan

The Texas Legislature created and charged the Texas High School Completion and Success Initiative Council with determining priorities for investments in dropout prevention strategies funded under HB 2237. And at the invitation of the Texas Education Agency, JFF made a presentation to the council, providing an overview of the early college vision, its design, and its promising outcomes. Early college is included as a key part of the strategic plan subsequently issued by the council.

For information on the council, go to: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/thscsic.

To download the strategic plan, go to:
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/ed_init/thscsic/StrategicPlan_ApprovedFINAL.pdf

6) ECHS in the News: Recent Highlights

•    A Doorway Back
      The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 4, 2008

This three-part series chronicles the experiences of 40 former high school dropouts in their first year in the Gateway to College program at the Community College of Philadelphia.

•    Native American Lessons, Against the Odds
      The [Portland] Oregonian, June 8, 2008

“'Culturally specific schools have an important role to play, especially when they are working with groups of students who have a history of cultural annihilation through education,’ says Linda Campbell, executive director at the Center for Native Education at Antioch University Seattle. ‘That is the story of American Indians'."

•    Learn and Earn a Finalist for Innovations in American Government Award
     WNCT-TV, [Greenville, NC], June 3, 2008

“Governor Mike Easley today announced that North Carolina’s Learn and Earn high school reform initiative has been named one of 15 finalists in the 2008 Innovations in American Government Awards competition sponsored by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.”

•    Editorial: New Strategies Vital in Higher Education
      San Antonio Express-News, June 3, 2008

“In one important attempt to alleviate the problem [of underprepared college students dropping out in Texas], some community college districts are working with school districts to nurture early college high schools.”

•   2008 Inspiration Awards Honor Schools in Georgia, Texas and Washington D.C.
    The Earth Times, [New York] April 21, 2008

“Three outstanding high schools that have successfully improved the academic environment and helped students achieve equitable access to higher education despite social, economic and cultural challenges have been named College Board 2008 Inspiration Award winners.”

•    Bell Multicultural Senior High: Embracing the Challenge of AP English for All Students
      The Washington Post, April 14, 2008

“Last year, Bell Multicultural became the first public high school in the Washington area to require all students to take college-level AP courses and exams. The mandate is all the more remarkable because its two required AP courses are both in English, and most of Bell’s students are, like Ventura, from low-income families in which English is not the first language.”

•    Coping with College Costs
      Deseret News, [Salt Lake City, UT], May 25, 2008

“Mary Lovell’s dreams are coming true. She just hopes she can pay for them…she has been accepted to Simmons College, a prestigious women’s institution in Boston…and she has some $12,000 in scholarships in hand. That leaves $29,000 she has to come up with. And that’s just for the first year.”