According to educationdata.org, ìDuring the 2019-2020 academic year, the average yearly cost of college tuition, fees and room and board was $30,500. For an in-state, public, two-year college, it costs roughly $13,000 a year. A student would pay about $22,000 annually for a four-year, in-state, public college. The average total price for a four-year degree is about $122,000.îFor the 2019-20 school year, Pikes Peak Community College charged $180 per credit. If a student takes five classes ó each class is three credits ó one semester will cost $2,700. Two semesters in one school year will cost a student $5,400. A 60 credit associate degree will total about $11,000.What if a student could take those classes for free?El Paso County Colorado School District 49 offers high school students free college classes through a program commonly referred to as dual enrollment or concurrent enrollment.Pikes Peak Early College is a high school in District 49 specializing in providing dual enrollment to their students. ìA few qualities that I think sets PPEC apart from other schools is that we are one of the only blended learning schools in Colorado that offers as much college as we do,î said Rochelle Kolhouse, associate principal of PPEC. ìStudents can get up to 60 credits or an associate degree through PPEC.ìAnother thing Iíd add is that we have an incredible staff, amazing teachers; thereís a good climate of culture here, and students are really a big, happy family. And you donít feel that way or see that a lot in other schools.îD 49 has a department dedicated to dual enrollment and creating liaisons with each college. ìThe district has been instrumental in making partnerships with colleges. Because of the partnerships and funds from the state, we are able to allow students to take college classes without having to pay for a whole lot, other than textbooks, which is pretty nice.îIn D 49, each college class is free because the Colorado funds dual enrollment through income tax, property tax or per-pupil funding for each school.Kolhouse said funding is different from district to district. ìWe get most of our funding from property taxes, and we also get funds from the state based on how many students there are enrolled in each school, so there is a per-pupil funding. And itís from the per-pupil funding that we allocate funds for concurrent enrollment.îAttending Pikes Peak Early College is a commitment. Students must be focused on advancing and motivated to put in the time and effort to get to the college level.The program is great for students looking for a challenge; students who want flexibility and excelled learning opportunities, Kolhouse said.ìIt cuts out a lot of the fluff that we teach in high school and lets kids get to the meat and potatoes of it,î she said. ìI think it provides students individualized education that you really canít get anywhere else.îHow does PPEC know a student is ready for college classes?ìFor us, itís a body of evidence,î said Dale Bonavita, PPEC counselor. ìA student must, first and foremost, qualify by taking the Accuplacer exam, or SAT, or ACT. That in and of itself doesnít necessarily mean that a student is ready for college classes. The second step in our process is that they will take a College Readiness Assessment Form with their English or math teacher, where they grade themselves based on their abilities with time management, communication, grit and resilience.îThe next step is determining how the student can handle situations like communications with professors, Bonavita said.ìAcademics are not the only requirement,î he said. ìStudents need to show that they have 21st century soft skills,î like following through with appointments, checking emails, etc. ìIn the end, itís a full body of evidence that the student demonstrates; itís academics and all of this other stuff that tells us a student is ready to take college classes.îThrough the concurrent enrollment program, students will know what to expect in a college environment. They will have a support structure, while learning how to deal with college level pressure. Last, the class is free, decreasing future student loan debt.According to educationdata.org, 38 percent of students drop out of college because of financial strain; 28 percent of students leave college as a freshman; and the average amount of student loan debt is $37,000.Bonavita said students at PPEC can defy these statistics.ìIt was found in districts ó talking locally ó (that) not all students were graduating and going to college,î he said. ìA lot of students were graduating high school, and then they would not attend college because they just didnít know what they wanted to do; or they thought they couldnít afford it. In our school, I think concurrent enrollment helps kids be more successful in college and continue their college career because whether you are leaving with 15 college credits or 40, students now have an idea of what they want to do.îTo learn more about Pikes Peak Early College, visit https://d49.org/ppec or call 719-494-8924.
