Williamsburg County School District Heads Up “Early College” Program

The Williamsburg County School District will begin a new endeavor this academic year by offering an opportunity for some of their students to participate in an “early college” program. Under the auspices of the Education and Economic Development Act (EEDA) legislation, “early college” is a component of a system called “Personal Pathways to Success” that has been implemented across the state to better provide students with the educational tools they need to build successful futures.

An estimated 60-70 Williamsburg County ninth graders will be bussed from their respective schools each day this academic year to attend classes taught by district teachers on the Williamsburg Technical College campus. Though the College is only providing space and is not involved in this phase of the “early college” program, plans are to expand the program each year to include higher grades and, once this year’s ninth graders reach the 11th grade and beyond, those grade levels will begin to receive dual enrollment credit for some of their classes taught by the district on the College’s campus. The dual enrollment program provides area high school students with the opportunity to get high school and college credit for specific courses which will provide honors credit at the high school level and, at the same time, provide transferable two- or four-year institution credit.

According to information from the Career and Technology Education (CATE) division of the South Carolina Department of Education, the “Personal Pathways” system maintains the state’s established high school graduation requirements while requiring that each student declare a career major in one of a number of different clusters of study. These clusters are organized around occupational sets. Students interested in entering the medical profession, for example, can choose career majors in the health science cluster as elective courses specifically geared toward health care. In addition, schools partner with businesses and other local institutions to provide students with the chance to get hands-on, real-world working experience in the field of their choice. This connects essential academic learning with acquisition of job-related skills in a powerful combination that improves students’ odds for career success.

“Personal Pathways” is designed to set up seamless transitions to postsecondary education by establishing articulation agreements among the state’s high schools, two-year colleges, and four-year colleges.