Dr. Cheryl
Cates, director of outreach services at North Central State College, stands behind
Senior High freshmen Tybalt Williams, left, Alania LeHew and William Payne. Three
Mansfield Senior High freshmen who began their college careers as
eighth-graders expressed their enthusiasm on Thursday for the program that will
allow them to leave high school with two-year associate degrees from North
Central State College.
Alania
LeHew, William Payne and Tybalt Williams spoke about their participation in
Graduate Pathway to Success (GPS) during a meeting of the Mansfield City
Schools ambassadors, a group of local citizens who share positive news about
the district throughout the community.
The GPS
allows students to earn an associate degree while in high school without
incurring any debt.
LeHew, Payne
and Williams are among 28 freshmen who will have dual enrollment at Senior High
and NCSC throughout their four years of high school. All were selected for GPS
after passing the college admission exam and completing a series of interviews.
Courses required by NCSC will be taught at Senior High in conjunction with high
school courses.
Dr. Cheryl
Cates, director of outreach services at NCSC, said OhioHealth is partnering
with the college and Mansfield City Schools in the first round of GPS. Current
freshmen in the program will graduate high school with associate degrees in one
of three areas of health services technology: community heath work certificate,
Pharmacy technician certification or state tested nurse assistant (STNA)
certification.
“OhioHealth is projecting that in four years there will be a need locally for 300 to 400 health care workers with varied skill sets,” Cates said. “OhioHealth will offer internships to students during their senior year.”
Cates said
65 current eighth-graders have applied to join GPS next year, subject to
admission testing and the interview process. Those selected for the second GPS
cohort will be announced next spring.
“This is not a ‘gimme’ program,” Cates said. “The whole point of this exercise is to identify kids who can be successful. It is an opportunity open to all eighth-graders.”
LeHew, who plans to become a veterinarian, said GPS is “a great opportunity for me and for anyone.”
“It has opened so many new experiences. I get to expand my thinking and social interactions with others,” she said. “It’s kind of a miracle that I can earn an associate degree and won’t be in debt. It makes me excited for my future.”
Payne
recalled his initial reaction when he learned about Graduate Pathway to
Success.
“When I first heard about it, I thought ‘opportunity, opportunity, opportunity.’ That’s what it is, a huge opportunity. We will be two years ahead of others coming out of high school,” he said.
Payne
described the three-week summer bridge program at NCSC that was designed to help
the 28 incoming freshmen get off to a successful start in their dual high
school-college courses.
“The summer program helped me prepare for the college class I’m taking now,” he said.
All of the
GPS freshmen are taking a first-semester introduction to computers course,
taught by an NCSC instructor at Senior High. The second semester they will take
a course in principles of biology.
Williams drew laughter when he recalled that he was “just getting used to sleeping in” when the three-week summer bridge program began at NCSC.
“But the classes were fun,” he said. “This program is a great opportunity to go to college as high school freshmen. I’m learning a lot in my computer course, things like Excel and Power Point.”
The four-year NCSC course structure is designed to mesh with Senior High courses. In some instances, GPS students will take NCSC courses together in place of high school courses. For example, as sophomores they will take basic anatomy and physiology or microbiology for health professionals in place of biological science. As juniors and seniors – again, for example – they will take NCSC English comp 1 and English comp II in place of Senior High’s English 11 and English 12.
Superintendent Brian Garverick said the decision to seek admission to Graduate Pathway to Success involved more than just the students.
“This was a family decision,” he said. “These (28) kids went through a rigorous qualification process. They had to be emotionally ready for college as well as academically ready.”
Cates said 35 of last year’s eighth-graders actually qualified for GPS. Five later decided to pursue other paths and two moved out of the district, she said.