Dual Enrollment

Fast Start

BBENSON@bridgew.edu — Tue, 09 Jul 2024 20:13:33 +0000

Fast Start BBENSON@bridgew.edu Tue, 07/09/2024 - 16:13

High school student takes classes at BSU while earning federal award

July 11, 2024

Brian Benson, G'23

As a homeschooled high school student, Madison Cable craved the interaction that can only take place in a classroom.

By participating in a dual-enrollment program at Bridgewater State, Madison is seizing that opportunity while earning credits toward a high school diploma and bachelor’s degree.

“I wanted to broaden my academic and social horizons,” said Madison, who especially enjoyed classes in college algebra and precalculus with trigonometry. “Being able to advance my math skills with other students and being taught by professors is something I’ve always wanted. It’s amazing and I love it.”

Madison, a Taunton resident who began taking Bridgewater classes in spring 2023, also completed music, English and sociology courses on campus. Being in a college environment taught her perseverance and self-advocacy – skills that were essential in accomplishing another impressive feat.

Madison recently received the Congressional Award’s gold medal, the highest achievement in a federal government program that recognizes young people for volunteerism, character development and fitness. She documented 800 hours of activities and completed an expedition in just two years.

“It was a very rewarding experience and I’m very glad I was able to achieve that,” said Madison, who recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to receive the medal alongside approximately 700 of her peers.

Madison tracked her progress in a large binder overflowing with records of activities such as serving holiday meals to people in need and becoming a student leader in the Handel and Haydn Society, a musical nonprofit she has long performed with. She incorporated her love of dance into the fitness requirement. And Madison completed the expedition virtually (due to the pandemic) by studying what life was like in Colonial Williamsburg in comparison to England.

Now entering her senior year of high school, Madison plans to continue taking classes at BSU in the fall. She aspires to study a STEM field at a four-year college after graduation, something for which she is well prepared thanks to her time at Bridgewater.

While Madison took college-level classes virtually as early as middle school, she credited BSU with bringing a new dimension to her education. In addition to improving her study skills, she’s now comfortable reaching out to professors with questions and making full use of resources such as the library and Academic Achievement Center.

Madison encouraged other high school students to step out of their comfort zones and challenge themselves through dual-enrollment courses.

“I think the best way to prepare for college is just to take college classes and get in there and have that experience under your belt,” she said. “It’s so rewarding, and it gave me an experience that I never thought I would be able to have.”

Do you have a BSU story you'd like to share? Email stories@bridgew.edu.

I wanted to broaden my academic and social horizons. Being able to advance my math skills with other students and being taught by professors is something I’ve always wanted. It’s amazing and I love it.

Madison Cable

Stepping Up

Anonymous — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 15:35:58 +0000

Stepping Up Anonymous Thu, 01/09/2020 - 10:35

Dual enrollment program gives Durfee students a headstart

May 28, 2019

Brian Benson

Story Series

News Feature

Savannah Melo once wondered if college was right for her. A new partnership between 51�Թ�� and her high school, B.M.C. Durfee, has given her the confidence to answer yes to that question.

“I was really nervous if I could do it, if I’m smart enough,” said Savannah, a junior who wants to be a pharmacist and is taking college English and public speaking classes at Durfee through the partnership. “I’m getting a taste of what college is like. That motivated me. If I just put my mind to it, I can do it.”

Savannah is among roughly 43 juniors and seniors participating in the program, which launched as a pilot this spring and serves those who show great promise but need some support. Students, some of whom would be the first in their family to graduate college, understand what professors expect and earn credits that will save them money when they get to college. Some want to attend Bridgewater.

“I think this is a trailblazing effort,” said Durfee Principal Matthew Desmarais. “It’s only going to serve to benefit our students in a great way… They’ll leave here with the skills they need to succeed in college. It’s not going to be a mystery.”

The initiative came about from a conversation last year between BSU President Frederick W. Clark Jr. and Fall River Superintendent Matthew Malone.

The dual enrollment program is different than traditional ones because the English, public speaking and statistics classes are taught at Durfee by college and high school instructors. That eases the transition for students because they have a familiar face in the classroom.

“They get exposed to what it’s like in college classes, but they have supports available while they are still high school students,” said Durfee English teacher John Saurette.

Saurette teams up with James Norman, ’07, of BSU’s Department of English, to teach Writing Rhetorically. The curriculum mirrors what students learn at BSU.

Norman, who came to a recent class sporting a bandana headband and clearly visible arm tattoos, dispels the myth that all college professors wear formal suits. He mixes humor with writing lessons and advice on succeeding in college.

"I’m not sure they all felt this is for them at the beginning,” Norman said. “Now, we’re at the point everyone loves coming to this class. More of them are like, ‘College is for me,’”

Lucas Roque, a senior taking BSU public speaking and English classes at Durfee, is more confident about his speaking abilities and attending college thanks to the program.

“It teaches us college is tough, but it’s not hard enough you can’t get it done,” Lucas said. “You just have to put your mind to it.”

Do you have a BSU story you'd like to share? Email stories@bridgew.edu

It teaches us college is tough, but it’s not hard enough you can’t get it done. You just have to put your mind to it.

Lucas Roque

Double Exposure

Anonymous — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 15:35:58 +0000

Double Exposure Anonymous Thu, 01/09/2020 - 10:35

Dual-enrollment program brings to campus eager high school students

November 13, 2018

Brian Benson

Story Series

News Feature

When seniors Alana Nicoletti (pictured below at left) and Coleby Paling (center) walk into their 51�Թ�� classes, they feel like college students and are treated like them, too.

That shouldn’t surprise you – until you realize they have yet to graduate high school.

“I’ve had many moments where people were like ‘Wait, what, you’re in high school?’” Coleby said.

Alana, Coleby, and 13 of their Wareham High School classmates, spend part of each school day attending BSU. They are among about 50 juniors and seniors from around the region who take classes at the university through a dual-enrollment program. Students generally earn high school and college credit, but the benefits extend far beyond an impressive transcript.

“They really are getting that experience of being in a college class,” said Ashley O’Donnell, G’14, a BSU admissions counselor who coordinates the program. “It gives them that opportunity to explore what they might want to study.”

Dual-enrollment students learn to navigate campus and become familiar with BSU social and academic life. The university hopes they want to become fulltime Bears, something Alana and Coleby are considering.

“It’s definitely prepared me more with the workload and homework and just learning time management,” Alana said.

Wareham administrators Scott Palladino and Deb Freitas praised former BSU President Dana Mohler-Faria, a Wareham High alumnus, current President Frederick W. Clark Jr., and many other BSU employees for their support.

The Wareham-BSU partnership, launched about five years ago, allows students to graduate high school with up to eight college courses under their belt along with a true taste of higher education.

“They know what college is going to be like,” said Palladino, the WHS principal. “They are not fearful. They know they will be successful in college because of this experience.”

Wareham students make connections at Bridgewater while retaining strong ties to their high school. Coleby recently attended a BSU theater production while Alana interacted with her college classmates concerning English projects. Junior Niccolo Lembo-Volpe traveled to the statehouse with his writing class to deliver letters they wrote to lawmakers (pictured above at right).

Wareham students find they have more responsibility for their assignments in college courses and must think critically about themselves and their work.

“I feel like being given the opportunity to just make a few more decisions for yourself really prepares you for when you’re going to be on your own,” Niccolo said.

Dual-enrollment information is available at area high schools. BSU staff can send info to home-schooled students. The deadline to apply for the spring 2019 semester is Nov. 27 by 5 p.m. (Photo also by Brian Benson)