Mayor Gray, council recognize dual-enrollment students at special session

Mayor Gray and the Hampton City Council convened a special session to honor students who completed Hampton’s dual-enrollment program, presenting certificates and inviting families forward for photos.

The mayor opened the event by calling attention to the graduates and named district leaders in attendance. Brian Marchese, the city’s outreach and creative coordinator, described the program’s origins and growth: “Tonight, we celebrate 65 students graduating,” he said, and highlighted how students earned college credits while completing high school requirements. Dr. Raymond Haines, the school superintendent, also confirmed the figure and added that the program has produced 226 associate-degree earners since it began.

Marchese and Haines emphasized the program’s college-credit and cost-savings benefits; Marchese said students “saved” two years of college tuition and supplies, and Haines stated the college coursework was provided at no cost to the students, saying, “This, of course, is at no cost to you all. We took care of all the costs.” The mayor had earlier described the group by high school (saying 58 students from Phoebus High School and one from Bethel High School); presenters later referred to a total of 65 graduates, a discrepancy noted at the event.

Council members joined Marchese at the front of the chamber to hand out certificates in alphabetical order as their names were called. The council and school leaders congratulated the students and families for their accomplishment and reiterated the partnership with Virginia Peninsula Community College as central to the program’s success.

The session ended after photos and brief closing remarks; no formal votes or other council actions were taken during the special meeting.