Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dual Enrollment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Paulding County highlights dual-enrollment gains: more than 900 students earned college credit this year
Summary
Associate Superintendent Tiffany Frasier told the Paulding County School Board that more than 900 students completed over 2,600 dual-enrollment courses this school year, collectively saving roughly $6.1 million in college tuition costs, and three current or former students spoke about their experiences.
At the April 22 Paulding County School Board recognition meeting, Associate Superintendent Tiffany Frasier outlined the district's dual-enrollment efforts and said the program has expanded access to college-level coursework for high school students across the district.
Frasier told the board that Georgia's Move On When Ready initiative allows high-school students to take college courses that count for both high-school and college credit. "Students can take up to 30 hours," she said, and noted that the current average in-state tuition figure she cited is $794 per credit; a full 30-credit load would represent substantial savings for families.
Frasier said the district made dual enrollment part of its strategic plan to increase access to advanced coursework. "This school year alone, we have had over 900 students earning college credit this year. They have taken over 2,600 courses," she said, and the district-level estimate she gave of tuition savings for students in the year was about $6,100,000.
Three students who participate in dual enrollment described their experiences. Ezra Lowell, a junior at Hiram High School taking courses at Georgia Highlands, said asynchronous courses let him work at his own pace and that entrepreneurship was a favorite class; he added that the coursework helped him manage a nonprofit. "For me, my favorite class was entrepreneurship," Ezra said.
Quinn Nunez, a senior at North Paulding High School completing a mechatronics pathway and an industrial-electrician certificate at Chattahoochee Tech, said hands-on industrial wiring courses taught skills such as installing three-way switches and reading blueprints. Abby Pope, a South Paulding High School graduate now at Berry College who earned CNA and patient-care technician certifications through dual enrollment, said the program helped her with class registration and housing priority in college because she had already accumulated credits.
Frasier and the students described practical benefits: cost savings, alignment of academic core courses to public college transfer policies in Georgia, career acceleration and earlier exposure to college expectations and online platforms.
Discussion versus decision: The item was informational. The board did not vote on program changes or funding during this presentation.
What the board recorded: The board recognized the students on stage and invited questions; no formal action was taken on dual enrollment at the meeting.
