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Shalom Alexander, a senior at Chalmette High School in St. Bernard Parish, also takes classes at nearby Nunez Community College. The dual-enrollment program is helping her prepare for college, where she plans to study mechanical engineering.
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Danita Bright always believed that her daughter, Shalom Alexander, who loved collecting screws as a child and tinkering with gadgets to figure out how they worked, was destined to become a brilliant engineer. But Bright, a single mother who never attended college, worried she wouldn’t know how to help her daughter navigate the complicated ins and outs of higher education. So when Shalom was accepted last year into a dual enrollment program that lets high school students take college courses, Bright was ecstatic.
“I wouldn’t know how to help her tap into anything,” said Bright, who lives with Shalom in St. Bernard Parish. She added that the program has been a “bridge” connecting her daughter to college and her dream of becoming an engineer.
The number of Louisiana students participating in dual enrollment courses has risen dramatically , with more than 41,000 high schoolers enrolled in classes at public colleges and universities during the 2023-24 school year, according to state data — a nearly 60% increase from three years earlier. Shalom Alexander, senior at Chalmette High School, talks to classmates in the hallway before class at Nunez Community College in Chalmette, La., Wednesday, Oct.
23, 2024. Alexander is enrolled in a dual enrollment program to major in mechanical engineering. (Photo by Sophia Germer, The Times-Picayune) Participation in dual enrollment is connected to many positive outcomes for students, including increased college enrollment, more earned credits and higher college GPAs, particularly among economically disadvantaged and first-generation college students, according to a study conducted by the Community College Research Center at Columbia University.
Yet even as dual enrollment surges in popularity and promotes college success, its progress is threatened by looming state budget cuts and rising college costs that could make the program less affordable for school districts, as well as by state policy changes that, critics say, give high schools fewer incentives to offer it. “We are a state that has significant poverty, but we are also a state that has tremendous potential,” said Louisiana’s Commissioner of Higher Education, Kim Reed. If dual enrollment becomes less accessible, “my concern is that students who need more skills, opportunities and credentials to enter the world of work will not get what they need.
” What is dual enrollment? Dual enrollment lets high school students take college-level courses, either with a certified teacher at their high school or on a college campus. The credits they earn can count toward their high school diplomas and college degrees, helping students save time and money if they enroll in college after graduation. School districts often use grants and state funds to pay for the programs, allowing high schoolers to take the courses for free.
“It relieves the burden on the parent or student when they do get to college,” said Quintin Taylor, Chancellor at River Parishes Community College in Gonzales, where a significant number of students come from low-income families. In Louisiana, where census data shows nearly one in five people live below the federal poverty line and only about 30% of adults have college degrees, dual enrollment programs can be life changing. Not only do they make college more affordable, but they also provide an introduction to campus life for first-generation and low-income students who are far more likely than their affluent peers to drop out.
“It gives them an idea of what college is like,” said St. Bernard Parish Superintendent Doris Voitier. In her district, where nearly 80% of students are economically disadvantaged, about a third of juniors and seniors participate in dual enrollment.
Such programs are especially important for students who are underrepresented in higher education, explained Kyla Pitcher, Executive Director of Pre-College and Outreach Programs at Southern University in Baton Rouge. She cited a study that found access to dual enrollment programs for Black and Hispanic students was crucial in helping them enter college better prepared financially and academically, making them less likely to drop out. “Making dual enrollment more accessible to those underrepresented populations is so important,” Pitcher said.
Duane Jardine, PTC, aerospace and math instructor, speaks to high school students enrolled in a dual enrollment program at Nunez Community College in Chalmette, La., Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024.
Jardine was also a dual enrollment student. (Photo by Sophia Germer, The Times-Picayune) Shalom Alexander, the aspiring engineer, makes the short drive from Chalmette High School to Nunez Community College three days a week to take classes in aerospace welding, electric assembly and other rigorous courses not offered at her high school. She recently made it to the third round of interviews for the Posse scholarship, which covers tuition at participating colleges for students with leadership potential.
If accepted, she hopes to attend Tulane or Texas A&M University to study mechanical engineering. Alexander said the dual-enrollment program has helped her feel prepared to start college next fall. It’s also made the cost feel more manageable, since she will enter with credits she earned for free during high school.
"A lot of people depend on dual enrollment,” said Alexander, 17, “because a lot of people don’t have the money to put themselves through college.” An uncertain future Yet as proponents push for dual enrollment to expand, it faces several hurdles. Many colleges used to charge a reduced rate for courses taken by dual-enrollment students, but last year, the Louisiana Community and Technical College System began requiring school districts to pay full tuition for courses taught on the system’s campuses, doing away almost entirely with reduced rates.
Chandler LeBoeuf, the system’s vice president of education, said many districts should be able to afford the higher costs by using state “supplemental course academy” funds, which are meant to help high schools offer classes beyond the required courses. “When we looked at the SCA dollars for those districts, there were still plenty available,” he said. “Are districts willing to use the SCA dollars to pay for dual enrollment opportunities?” Still, school leaders say the money only goes so far.
“Tuition costs are going up for four-year universities for every credit hour,” said Michael Faulk, executive director of the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents. For example, three credit hours might cost $450 now instead of $150. “That difference is going to deplete funds a lot quicker,” said Faulk, who suggested that schools use any surplus state funding for career education to help pay for dual enrollment.
Leaders also say that changes to the state’s school-rating system, which are set to go into effect next year, give schools less of an incentive to invest in college-prep programs like dual enrollment. Under the revamped system, just 8% of a high school’s rating is based on whether students earn college credits, down from 25% under the current system. Voitier, the St.
Bernard Parish superintendent, said the change devalues the effort schools have put into the program — something she finds especially frustrating after her district saw seven students graduate last year with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree. “This was a big movement,” she said of college-prep programs. “Now, we’re being told to completely change strategies.
” High school students wait in the hallways of Nunez Community College in Chalmette, La., Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024.
(Photo by Sophia Germer, The Times-Picayune) Leaders have warned that a potential $250 million cut to the state’s higher education budget next year could put dual enrollment programs at further risk, with some colleges saying it may lead to fewer course offerings and discounts for high schoolers. It could impact “what we’re able to provide in terms of quantity,” said Jimmy Sawtelle, Chancellor of Central Louisiana Technical Community College in Alexandria. While Southern University does offer reduced rates to the 540 high schoolers who currently attend classes on campus, Pitcher said cuts to higher education may make those discounts unfeasible.
Underrepresented populations “no longer having access to something that’s so beneficial, it worries me,” Pitcher said. For parents like Danita Bright, who want to help their children to attend college but aren’t sure how, dual enrollment has been a godsend. It’s “given me the platform to help my child go further,” she said.
“Without it, I’d be totally lost.”.
