In August 2002, Guilford College, in cooperation with Guilford County schools, welcomed 100 students who sought to change the course of their educational futures.
Enrolled students in the Early College (EC) are required to possess at least three of four criteria: a grade-point average of 3.0/B or better, high performance on North Carolina standardized tests, a well written essay, and references, according to the EC website, http://www.earlycollegeonline.org/.
As described by EC principal Tony Burks II, students who choose to join in are “pioneers, just like the very first Guilford College students of 1837. The (EC) students take the risk of coming to a new program that was never offered before.”
The school was North Carolina’s first EC high school two years ago and even now is fairly unique. By 2009, there will be only 130 EC programs nationwide.
In June 2003, the Guilford County School Board agreed to allow the EC at Guilford to continue as a Guilford County high school, ending the College’s attempt to turn the EC into a charter school. The Board agreed to reimburse a tuition rate of $4,500 per student to Guilford for those in the last two years of high school. The school board also agreed not to pursue the establishment of new EC high schools at other universities or colleges.
Early College students earn both high school and college credit.
Originally located in the basement of Frank science building, the ninth- and tenth-grade EC students moved to a temporary mobile structure next to Bauman telecommunications center this year. Principal Burks hopes that that fundraising efforts will result in a more permanent structure in as little as three to five years.
Space issues are not a pressing matter as EC juniors and seniors are fully integrated into the college community. All students from the school have access to Hege library, computer labs, and hang-out spots like Founders hall.
“The traditional students did not know that we were EC unless we told them,” said junior Tess McEnery, an EC graduate who now attends Guilford as a traditional student. “The ones that did were accepting and generous overall.”
McEnery attended a traditional high school before coming to Guilford, but said that the two are not comparable. “I had more freedom at Guilford,” she said. “The school was more challenging. The only thing that is different than my experience as a student today is dorm life.”
Responsibility is part of the formula that administrators highlight as a major advantage. The EC program, “exposes the students to problem solving that can ease the transition into college,” said Burks.” They will already know how to work through situations like approaching a professor or dealing with group sessions where one person decides not to do their work.”
The EC students may be considered academically gifted, but that does not mean that they are radically different from other students their age.
“They still get in to trouble; they still do the things high school students do,” Burks said. “This school gives them the opportunity to find the people that are passionate about what they are passionate about.”
This philosophy, paired with smaller classes and a team of academic professionals, is quickly making the former pilot program the school of choice for many of Guilford County high school students.
Twelfth-grade student Catherine Kinisley was attracted to the EC program because she wants to concentrate more on academic challenges.
“It gives us responsibilities in a good way,” she said. “Not little kid responsibilities, but ones that are appropriate for our age group. We’re not spoon-fed everything. Classes are held every day, but they are taught like college classes. I have seen freshman students (from other schools) coming in less prepared to do that than we are.”
Kathy Adams, EC liaison and advisor for EC eleventh- and twelfth-grade students, describes them as “bright” but, like Burks, quickly adds that the group includes diverse personalities.
Much like the other Guilford student populations, some are “gregarious and sociable” while others are “shy,” Adams said.
One trait that links them all together is their drive to succeed. Adams said “All of the students have an interest in learning. They are highly motivated.