Students as young as fifteen could be in Guilford’s classrooms next year if an “early college” program is approved between Guilford and the public high schools.Mona Olds, dean of student life, along with Academic Dean Kathy Adams, Chief Financial Officer Phil Manz, and Director of Enrollment Randy Doss, are discussing the idea with Superintendent Terry Grier of the Guilford County Schools.

The program would allow exceptionally strong high school students to take classes here and receive college credit.

“There are still a number of financial, space and service issues that need to be worked out, so it’s still in the very formative stages,” Olds said.

Guilford County high school teachers would teach ninth and tenth graders in Guilford’s classroom space, while the eleventh and twelfth graders would take regular college classes and have dual enrollment status. Upon graduating from high school, the students would also have completed their first two years of college.

“This will help Guilford’s visibility and attract quality students with the hopes that some of them would stay to complete a four-year degree,” said Kathy Adams, academic dean.

The concept of this plan is modeled after the early college program between Bard College and New York City and Mary Baldwin College in Virginia.

If it receives final approval, an experimental pilot program would start next fall with 20 to 40 students each in the ninth and eleventh grades, according to Adams.

The Board of Trustees gave approval to the pilot at their meeting last week.

“If this can be a contribution of this Quaker institution to making sure that talented young people have access to good teaching and resources, I would want to support it enthusiastically,” said Bruce Stewart, chairman of the board of trustees.

The Guilford County Schools would pay the tuition and fees for each student, but the amount is not yet finalized.

“We’re very clear that we don’t want the college subsidizing or underwriting the program,” Stewart said.

What would also is needed, according to Olds, is communication of necessary “ground rules” when mixing these two types of students together.

“Certain aspects of college life are appropriate for these younger students but other aspects are not,” Olds said. “We would want to have some boundaries discussed and agreed upon early on in the program.”

But Olds foresees no major problems with the program.

“Having 40 to 80 younger students who would tend to leave campus by middle afternoon probably will not affect the climate of the main campus students who usually experience their day from 10 a.m. until 3 a.m.,” she said.

However, having more day students is a “potential concern” for philosophy professor Lisa McLeod.

“It’s important that we keep everyone in mind and keep an eye on the main campus students in this process. But everyone seems to be doing that so far,” said McLeod.

There are currently around twenty Guilford students who have skipped portions of their high school career to attend college early.

Senior Keenan O’Leary began taking classes at Elmira College in New York when she was sixteen.

“I felt like my life was being wasted away in high school,” O’Leary said.

Senate plans to host a forum soon with Randy Doss to present the program to students.