Ever wanted to achieve a college education or experience college-like classes while still in high school? Here at Arvada West High School and other neighboring schools, have access to a program called Warren Tech. This allows students (juniors and seniors) to go to college-level classes, earn college credits, all while being in high school.
Even Warren Tech states on their website that their goals for their current and future students are, “Warren Tech inspires students to ignite their passions and pursue career pathways that lead to professional success and lifelong learning.”
Allowing students to grow and expand, and to truly flourish while inside this program gives them the chance to explore their future career path, learning the challenges that go along with that career.
The issue with this program is how limited it is. Students have to get lucky enough to be inside the program, due to the admission process being more like a lottery, as stated on their website, “Students are placed in priority groups and put into a lottery for each of the program(s) and/or session(s) they applied to.”
Although it allows for every student to have an opportunity, there are still many left who aren’t lucky enough to get the opportunity.
This is why, here at A-West, there should be more opportunities for students to have the ability to gain college credits, while we mainly have CTE classes offering a variety of pathways, since only a few classes offer college credit. Natalie Schafer, a social studies teacher at A-West, is moving her program from an elective to a college-level class. Sharing how important this opportunity can be for many, she explains, “I think it also allows them to explore topics that they may not have considered in college but might consider in high school.”
In college, the risk vs. reward is much higher, and for many students, having to pick a single career can be difficult, especially if they don’t have experience. The amount of debt that can occur for a single mistake is not worth potentially going into a career that one can end up hating.
A-West already has programs, as Schafer has stated, but it’s not enough. If A-West were able to implement more career exploration-type programs similar to careers students would like to explore, it would make going to college less of a large stress that’s looming.
This also doesn’t just mean AP classes, because yes, they do give the opportunity to achieve those college credits. But implementing classes around law, barber, nursing, and so many more would give everyone that opportunity for success that they may not have in a regular class.
The article, “Evidence of Success,” shares on their website nm a variety of studies, one explaining how even with the disadvantage of an income, having the opportunity to go to a college level class in high school shows a promising result, “Low-income and underrepresented students in higher education experience the biggest positive impacts on their ability to access and complete college by getting a jumpstart on taking college classes in high school, particularly in early college high schools.”
Not every student is lucky enough to be able to pay for college or earn scholarships, which deters students from applying and represents a major barrier. If A-West gave the ability to earn college credits while in high school, the stress that students can have would decrease.
For everyone to have the same opportunity to go to college shows promise. Giving the opportunity to go to college allows more members of our society to enter the workforce early, while having more educated and more experienced members. Not having to worry about the large amount of debt, and/or working jobs while in school. This allows everyone a fair chance to get into the career that they’d like, despite any shortcomings.