State officials collecting data on high school, college kids

DES MOINES - Education officials are collecting data on Iowa students who earn community college credits while in high school to see how well-prepared those students are for college.

According to a new report by the Iowa Department of Education, more than 38,200 high school students in Iowa took classes last year for credit through community colleges, 50 percent more than five years earlier. Those students accounted for more than 25 percent of the enrollment at the state's community colleges.

The Des Moines Register reported Wednesday that the state hasn't tracked passing and failing rates, and officials don't know whether the courses are as tough as those offered at the college level. But state officials are now collecting that information, said Roger Utman, administrator for the Education Department's Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation.

Utman said Iowa's 15 community colleges are in the process of gaining accreditation through the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnership to ensure concurrent enrollment courses are taught at a rigorous level. The accreditation process is forcing them to set up a framework to monitor college courses taught at their partner high schools, Utman said.

Iowa State University also is studying the performance of high school students who take college classes.

Researchers have found that community college students, including high school students who take advanced courses, have more problems with college coursework once they reach Iowa State, said Wolfgang Kliemann, chairman of the university's math department. He said they haven't been able to look specifically at high school students who earn college credit because they are waiting for information from the state.

"These students would fall into the category of 'there may be problems there,'" Kliemann said. "My wish is that high schools as well as community colleges really educate students very carefully and thoroughly. Students do not have enough of the foundations. But they go on and take additional courses for which they are not prepared and, therefore, these courses are not very useful."

Families see the courses as an opportunity for students to get exposure to college-level work and to potentially save thousands of dollars in tuition money. High school students incur no costs with earning the community college credit.

The courses also help students determine their career path, while allowing them to take lighter course loads or finish early.

But some students have a false sense of being ahead when they get to college, said Phil Caffrey, senior associate director of admissions at Iowa State.

"You can have a student who comes in with 30 credits under their belt," Caffrey said. "Mom and dad believe they have three years left to get their degree instead of four. While all of those credits transfer, they might not help them toward their degree program."

The number of high school students taking college classes began to grow more than two decades ago after Iowa lawmakers passed legislation requiring high schools to pay for students to take the courses. The idea was aimed at advanced students and gave high schools a less expensive way to expand their offerings, Caffrey said.

Now, college officials are seeing more average students with the credits. At Iowa State, more than 60 percent of incoming freshmen come to the university with college credits, Caffrey said.

High schools receive extra money for each student who enrolls in a college-level course. A portion of the money goes to the community college, while the rest is used to offset the high school's expenses, officials said. In 2008, legislators passed a bill aimed at expanding students' access to college courses and credits.

North Scott High School in Eldridge almost doubled the courses available to students. Of this year's 174 graduates, 76 percent had completed a college-credit course, said Principal Shane Knoche.

"We wanted to provide an opportunity for kids to get a taste for what a college class is like to show them what they are capable of," Knoche said.

Christian Trinidad, who just completed 11th grade at Des Moines Lincoln High School, began taking college-level courses in 10th grade at the urging of a school counselor. The classes have played a large role in his decision to pursue a career in computer engineering, while giving him a head start in college, he said.

"I'm getting the grasp of what this career is and making sure that this is what I want to study," he said.