What are early college high schools?
Early college high schools are small schools from which students have the opportunity to earn a high school diploma and also an associate’s degree or up to two years of college credit toward a bachelor’s degree. They represent a new way of organizing high schools and the first two years of college.
How are you different than Academy of the Canyons?
Santa Clarita Valley Early College High School accepts incoming freshman and provides a comprehensive four year high school curriculum blended with up to two years of college. Academy of the Canyons is a Middle College that accepts only incoming juniors and seniors.
Where will Santa Clarita Valley ECHS be located?
SCVECHS will be located on the new College of the Canyons Education Center in Canyon Country. This new facility will be on approximately 50 acres of land and will offer approximately 50,000 square feet of classroom space. The high school will be located directly on this campus which will offer all the services currently available to students at College of the Canyons in Valencia.
Why are Early College High Schools necessary?
Today, higher education, not a high school diploma, is the ticket to the middle class, yet upper-income students are seven times more likely than low-income students to earn a bachelor's degree by age 24. In America's largest cities, nearly half of the students do not graduate high school in four years.
What are the advantages of early college high schools for students?
Students in early college high schools can earn both a high school diploma and two years of college credit at no cost. Thus, these schools make college more affordable to students and their families. Graduates are ready for the academic and social challenges of college, and they are motivated to work hard in school because they see themselves as “college material.” By changing the structure of the high school years and compressing the number of years to a college degree, early college high schools have the potential to improve graduation rates and better prepare students for entry into high-skill careers. This approach helps young people to progress toward the education and experience they need to succeed in life and a family-supporting career.
How will the schools be funded?
In addition to public funds that support K-12 schools, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in partnership with Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, has contributed over $120 million to launch the schools. The schools will be funded long-term by public dollars.
What types of students do Early College High Schools serve?
Early College High Schools focus on students for whom a smooth transition into postsecondary education is now problematic: low-income students, underrepresented groups in college admissions, English Language learners, and first-generation college goers.
What is the Student Information System (SIS)?
The Student Information System is a secure, confidential collection of data about students attending early college high schools throughout the United States. The SIS provides information and analyses to guide the development and improvement of early college high schools. It also provides evidence on how well early college high schools are achieving their mission: to help young people progress toward the education and experience they need to succeed in life and a family-supporting career.
What information is in the Student Information System (SIS)?
The SIS includes information about each student’s academic achievement in early college high school, prior academic achievement going back to at least the eighth grade, and college attainment after graduation from early college. School districts must supply student information on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, free & reduced lunch rates), standardized test scores (including two to four years before enrolling), student attendance rates, courses taken (both at the high school and college), and SAT/PSAT and ACT scores. Colleges must supply information on college placement test results, college courses completed and grades earned in those classes, degrees or credentials awarded to early college high school students, grade point averages and results on college placement exams.
Why collect this information?
The SIS helps stakeholders in the Early College High School Initiative learn more about the effectiveness of early college high schools, and it helps the Initiative gain the support necessary to strengthen and expand this new vision of schools.
How is students’ privacy protected?
The Student Information System is a secure data system. Individual student information is completely confidential and protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Personal identity is protected by a unique Student Information System number, assigned by EDSmart, the developers of the SIS. Only this identifier, not student names or social security number, is visible and accessible to users of the SIS.
