Sloan School wins grant for dual-enrollment course with Bucks County Community College

A grant from the Council Rock Education Foundation will let Sloan School students take a one-credit dual-enrollment course at Bucks County Community College this spring, district officials said Wednesday.

Why it matters: the program is designed to help seniors from Sloan — a program that serves students with social anxiety or school-refusal challenges — gain confidence and practical skills for college and career transitions. The dual-enrollment course gives students college credit and in-district credit, while removing financial and logistical barriers.

Course and logistics: Sloan teacher Adam Palachi and Sloan counselor Kevin Donnelly said 12 of 13 seniors signed up voluntarily for "Guided Studies 101," a one-credit course that meets one hour weekly on Thursdays. The class runs February 13 through May 1, according to presenters, and focuses on time management, coping skills and career exploration. "The class is all about what to expect out of college and after you graduate high school," Palachi said.

Funding and enrollment: district staff said the grant covers transportation to Bucks and the college enrollment fee; students have already completed placement testing. "It's covering the transportation and the enrollment fee for Bucks," Kevin Donnelly said. The district will present a dual-enrollment agreement for board approval at a future regular meeting.

Context and follow-up: presenters noted the program provides an accessible graduation pathway for some students under Act 158 graduation options (participants may use dual enrollment as part of a graduation pathway). Administrators said they expect to report back next year on how many participating seniors enroll in postsecondary options and that the program was designed to be scalable if future funding permits.