‘Jump Start’ finds success

Churchill County High School students and Western Nevada College Jump Start to College program have had a successful first semester, CCHS Principal Kevin Lords said.

Jump Start to College, a partnership between CCHS and WNC, allows high school junior and senior students to take college-level coursework while still attending high school.

Initial screening was conducted last spring through the assessment of qualified sophomore and junior students, Lords said. Of the 95 students who met the entrance criteria for admission to WNC, only 40 chose to attend college classes on the WNC campus this academic year.

Lords said the Jump Start students completed their first semester classes in December. They were enrolled in English 101, Math 126, History 101 and Communications 101. Students were also afforded a weekly study session at WNC and a daily study session at CCHS. These students had a 96 percent pass rate in those courses, compared to a 73 percent overall pass rate of the general WNC population, he said.

In addition to the college credits, the CCHS students earned dual credits for high school, meaning that credits will count for both high school and college graduation requirements. Students who start the Jump Start program as juniors may attend additional college-level courses at night or during the summers, in which they could accumulate enough credits to earn an Associate Arts degree by the end of their senior year at CCHS.

Currently, qualified CCHS students are being identified for screening for the 2015 Jump Start for College Program, Lords said. Minimum qualifications require a student to have successfully completed Algebra 2 with a B or better and pass the College Accuplacer assessment for English/Language Arts. He said once students are identified, the school notifies parents and asks them to attend a joint meeting between CCHS and WNC to answer any questions they may have.

CCHS is a comprehensive high school that provides a broad range of coursework for the students of Churchill County. All CCHS students, including Jump Start students, have the opportunity to take a wide range of academic and elective courses to enhance their academic skills, develop career and job skills and broaden their appreciation of the arts.

“It is exciting to be able to provide a broad spectrum of options to meet the needs of our student population,” Lords said.

Students who have taken the courses have positive things to say about the program.

“Jump Start to college is giving me a taste of what it is to be a college student,” senior William Reece said. “I have to take a lot more responsibility for myself and stay organized and ask for help when I need it. I am planning to probably stay at WNC and get my AA before I go on to a four-year college.”

“The program is helping me and challenging me,” junior Issac Osberg Harbert said. “However, I wish they had offered a science class.

“I plan to stay in for next year. The hardest class was one where the teacher lectured, and we are expected to do all the reading and be tested on both. But, overall, what I like best are the instructors.”

Questions about the Jump Start for College Program, or any other program offered at CCHS, contact the CCHS office at 775-423-2181.