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Board questions Embry Riddle dual-enrollment deal after data on attrition and student costs
Summary
Board members pressed district staff for data on the Gates Aerospace (Embry Riddle) dual-enrollment agreement after staff reported steep attrition from first to second course and estimated remaining private-college costs at about $154,000 for a student continuing at Embry Riddle; members asked for a CTE audit and suggested teach-out language if the board moves to end the contract.
Board members spent an extended portion of the meeting scrutinizing the district’s agreement with Embry Riddle (the Gates Aerospace Career Academy relationship) and asking how the program serves students’ postsecondary goals.
A district staff presenter provided enrollment and completion figures showing sharp drop-off between aeronautical tech 1 and aeronautical tech 2 at multiple sites and said current participation counts are 76 students at Godby and 27 at Rickards (103 total across sites). The staff estimate for a student who continued from the program into a four-year degree at Embry Riddle produced an estimated remaining cost of "about a $154,000," according to staff remarks comparing private college per-credit costs (cited at $1,840 per credit hour) with public college rates.
Board members challenged whether the dual-enrollment credits transfer, whether Embry Riddle offers discounts, and whether the program’s outcomes align with the district’s master credentials list. One board member argued the drone certification is on the master credentials list and yields industry certification, while other members said they want a clearer annual-review process that measures return on investment for CTE offerings.
Several members recommended an internal audit of CTE pathways and an exit or “teach‑out” plan to allow students already enrolled to complete the program if the board chooses to disengage in the future. Staff said a teach‑out would likely take one to two years to allow current cohorts to finish and that the drone cohort is a three‑year cycle; staff also noted the contract allows either party to terminate with 30 days’ notice but acknowledged practical considerations for students already enrolled.
One member pressed for consistent fiscal-impact information on agenda items after noting a $4,284-per-year figure appeared in the agreement but was not clearly presented in the agenda details; another member suggested the district pursue alternate local pathways (for example, Lively or TSC) that could be less expensive and better aligned to local labor demand.
Ending: Board members asked staff to provide additional data and to consider an audit of CTE programs and teach‑out language for the Embry Riddle relationship; no vote on the contract was recorded in the workshop.
