Merging High School and College: How Early College High Schools Are Changing Our Educational Systems

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

The early college high school model—which allows students to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and an associate degree or two years of college credits—is serving as a test case of whether our secondary and postsecondary systems should be separated (as they currently are) or if they can be combined. This session provides an overview of the model, shares rigorous research about its effectiveness, and explores what it would take to scale up this model. A panel including policymakers and practitioners will highlight the implications of the ECHS, considering how this model might change our educational structures in order to benefit students traditionally underrepresented in college.

Sub Unit

• Division J - Postsecondary Education / Division J - Section 2a: College Student Access, Trajectories, and Transitions

Chair

• Krystal Cox, Healthcare Foundation of Wilson

Papers

• Conceptualizing Early College High School - Julie A. Edmunds, University of North Carolina - Greensboro

• The Impact of North Carolina’s Early College Model - Elizabeth J. Glennie, RTI International

• Scaling up the Early College High School Model - Nina Arshavsky, University of North Carolina - Greensboro

Discussant

• Tanya Smith, Duplin Early College High School