The Board of Education on Wednesday night unanimously approved a proposal for entering into a College and Career Access Pathways (CCAP) agreement with the Peralta Colleges in order to create dual enrollment opportunities for high school students in Piedmont.
The four Peralta Colleges are Merritt College, Laney College, College of Alameda, and Berkeley City College.
Dual enrollment gives high school students the opportunity to take college courses taught by college professors at their high school campus and earn college credit while still in high school. This opportunity also affords students the opportunity to take courses that they otherwise would not have access to.
In a Dec. 7 article, The San Francisco Chronicle called dual enrollment “the hottest trend in public education today.”
Assistant Superintendent Ariel Dolowich and Piedmont High School Principal David Yoshihara presented the proposal to trustees. They said that through informal and formal surveys, students have shown a significant interest in earning college credit and pursuing advanced college-level courses that a traditional high school master schedule does not provide, citing higher level (post-calculus) math courses in particular.
Considerations for potential dual enrollment courses include but are not limited to:
I. Mathematics: Calculus III, Linear Algebra, Discrete Mathematics, Differential Equations
II. Computer Science: Data Structures & Algorithms & Foundations in Data Science
III. CTE Courses: Broadcast Journalism I/II, Broadcast Media Accouncing & Performance, Stagecraft, Intro to Stage Lighting
The proposal next goes to the Peralta Community College District for approval before courses are selected and details worked out. Yoshihara said PUSD teachers would be consulted throughout the process.