High school students walk towards a land of opportunity, but because of Georgia House of Representatives Bill 444, only a limited few are able to go in. Clarke Central High School and Athens Community Career Academy junior Camille Thomas has been a part of the Dual Enrollment system since the beginning of her junior year, and is concerned about how HB-444 will affect future students. “I think (the bill is) stupid because it’s helping a lot of people go in to college as sophomores with credit, and if you take this away they’re now losing what they’re gonna be able to do in high school. I feel like it’s wasting time (without Dual Enrollment),” Thomas said. Illustration by Frances Thrasher
Georgia’s Dual Enrollment program has been amended by Georgia House of Representatives Bill 444, which was passed on April 28. The Bill will reduce funding, and in turn, potentially lower state debt.
Georgia House of Representatives Bill 444, which seeks to amend Georgia’s current state-wide Dual Enrollment program, passed both houses of the state legislature and was signed by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp on April 28.
HB-444 will be effective for the Summer 2020 term and officially become state law by July 1. The Bill was first introduced by sponsor Georgia Rep. Bert Reeves on Feb. 22, 2019, with the purpose of reducing state spending to lower state debt without completely cutting program funding.
For the Georgia state budget, Dual Enrollment funding is assigned to the Higher Education category. According to the Georgia Budget & Policy Institute, no additional funding was added to the proposed 2021 fiscal year budget, leaving it at $100.8 million.
“Between (fiscal year) 2016 and 2019 (fiscal year), costs doubled as more students participated, growing from $49 million to $105 million,” the GBPI website states. “During the 2019 (Georgia) legislative session, lawmakers introduced (Georgia) House Bill 444 in an effort to curb costs. The bill did not pass, and no program changes were made.”
Now that HB-444 has passed in the 2020 legislative session, the Bill will have a Funding Cap of 30 semester hours, about 10 college classes.
According to Athens Community Career Academy counselor Laura Hyer, as new changes are being rolled out, a grandfather clause will be applicable for students already enrolled.
“If a student at the end of (the Spring 2020) term has 18 semester hours or less, then the 30 semester hour cap would apply. But if a student has 19 or more (semester hours), the student may receive an additional 12 semester hours,” Hyer said.
However, if a student finishes the Dual Enrollment Funding Cap before their senior year and would like to continue their college education during high school, they will have to fund it themselves or begin using their Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally HOPE funding.
“Students who have reached the Dual Enrollment Funding Cap may be eligible for HOPE Grant and HOPE Career Grant Programs as a ‘bridge’ to additional funding,” the Georgia Student Finance Commission website states on their Dual Enrollment funding Program Frequently Asked Questions page. “Students may be responsible for any charges not covered by the HOPE Grant and Career Grant funding such as fees and books. The course credit hours paid by HOPE Grant funding will be applied to the 63 semester Paid-Hours limit and the Combined Paid-Hours HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarship and Grant Limit.”
A page on the Georgia Student Finance Commission website shows the steps to apply for Dual Enrollment funding. CCHS ESOL department teacher Cori Pringle wishes the Bill 444 had more flexibility for the students. “I understand the necessity for (Bill 444). It seems like the funding is just not available to keep up where we are,” Pringle said. “But I do wish there was a way to somehow have the best of both worlds where students who (had qualifying) grades and SAT scores and everything else (to be) eligible to dual enroll would be able to have some leniency (on funding), especially students who do it earlier. There’s so many situations that I feel that are unique that I hate when it’s just a blanket bill.”
While high school sophomores are eligible to participate in the Georgia Dual Enrollment system, their opportunities are limited.
“All eligible 10th Graders may enroll in approved Career, Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) courses listed on the Course Directory at a participating TCSG institution only,” the GSFC website states. “10th Graders who have a minimum SAT score of 1200 or minimum ACT composite score of 26 in a single national test administration, may enroll in any approved courses listed on the Course Directory at a TCSG, (University System of Georgia) or private eligible participating postsecondary institution.”
Georgia’s Dual Enrollment program was previously called Move On When Ready, which was started in 2015 to unite local Dual Enrollment programs in Georgia and to give all high school students an opportunity to take college classes, without using their HOPE funds.
According to Lawrence Harris, Clarke County School District Community Engagement and Strategic Partnerships Executive Director and former ACCA CEO, the plan wasn’t made for the long term.
“(MOWR) opened opportunities for every class and every program, so students didn’t have to feel like they were limited by only certain courses,” Harris said. “When it passed, it was a big question everybody had, like, ‘How do you sustain this model?’ Once more and more students start taking (advantage) of this, (it’s) going to cost the state a lot of money, and so who’s paying for it, (and) where (are) the taxes coming from?”
Benefits of the Dual Enrollment program are widely recognized by students, parents and teachers alike. Clarke Central High School and ACCA junior Camille Thomas has been a part of the Dual Enrollment program since the start of her junior year and has enjoyed her experience.
“I feel like the classes at (ACCA) actually (teach me something), and I like them. I take (the) Early Childhood (pathway, and) I feel like that’s gonna help me raise kids, if I want to go (into) Early Childhood (Education).”
— Camille Thomas,
CCHS and ACCA junior
“I think it helps not waste your time. I feel like at Clarke Central, (and just) high school in general, (is) a waste of time because (you have to take) classes that you don’t need, you just need them to graduate, (and) you don’t even like them,” Thomas said. “I feel like the classes at (ACCA) actually (teach me something), and I like them. I take (the) Early Childhood (pathway, and) I feel like that’s gonna help me raise kids, if I want to go (into) Early Childhood (Education).”
CCHS freshman academy social studies department teacher Taylor Perrault assists freshman students on their high school plans and thinks that this bill will help students be more attentive when choosing classes.
“The (biggest) thing that it will cause is (getting) students to be able to really (pay) attention (and) make them have to do a lot more research on what classes are going to benefit them for the long term, knowing now that (they’re) not going to be able to just take class after class,” Perrault said. “If (they) have a long term plan, (they’re) able to make sure that, wherever (they’re) wanting to end up at school, that the Dual Enrollment that (they) are taking will transfer to that place.”
CCHS ESOL department teacher Cori Pringle recognizes the benefits of Dual Enrollment, but also the future possibility of CCHS offering classes that students are interested in.
“It just seems that there will be students who will be taking more classes (at CCHS) and maybe having to scale back (on college courses), and so, you know, the good thing I guess is that maybe we’ll be able to offer more AP classes here,” Pringle said.
CCHS junior Maggie Thompson started Dual Enrollment at the University of Georgia in the Fall 2019 semester and is frustrated with the changes that are being made and how she has to rethink her high school plan.
“At this point, I either have to go back to Clarke Central and take, I don’t even know which classes I would take because I have taken most of the classes either at Central or at UGA, and so I’d have a couple electives,” Thompson said. “I’d have to do that or graduate early, which is what I’m looking at, but it’s a little annoying just not to be able to graduate with the rest of your class.”
“I’d have to do that or graduate early, which is what I’m looking at, but it’s a little annoying just not to be able to graduate with the rest of your class.”
— Maggie Thompson,
CCHS junior
According to the 2018 CCSD census, 32% of minors live below the poverty line. Thompson’s mother, CCHS parent Jennifer Thompson, is worried about the consistency of dual enrollment opportunities for high school students of different economic backgrounds. For example, lower income students may not be able to pay for the additional dual enrollment classes once they reach the funding cap, meaning that they will have fewer opportunities compared to more well-off students.
“I think that there are arguable (disparities) in terms of students who take advantage or are able to take advantage of Dual Enrollment, (which) are probably, although not always, students who come from households (…) with higher incomes (and) higher socioeconomic status,” Jennifer said. “So I’m sympathetic to those challenges.”
CCHS junior Nakia Rucker has participated in Dual Enrollment with ACCA since her sophomore year and is concerned about the changes made to Dual Enrollment and the effects on future students.
“This could possibly make people shy away from doing Dual Enrollment due to how things are changing now, because if they change hours (now), they could possibly change a lot more (in the future),” Rucker said.
UGA Dual Enrollment Adviser Angela Romero-Shih works at UGA to guide high school students into the UGA environment. Based on her experience with dual enrollment, she believes that high school students will be affected for a variety of reasons.
“The greatest impact that has affected our (current Dual Enrolled juniors) are the limits of course choices and hours. Many enrolled juniors have been struggling with two issues: they have been in the program long enough that they only have a small group of courses they can take left, and they have already completed many of the core courses they need to graduate,” Romero-Shih wrote in an email. “With the incoming crop of newly accepted students, we have had enough warning that counselors, and college advisors can assist (sophomores and juniors) in navigating the program with the most recent parameters.”
Similar to ACCA in Athens, there are several other programs across Georgia that are specifically designed to provide high school students access to a TCGS institution. Due to the future change in state funding for Dual Enrollment, Hyer knows that ACCA will have to alter its programming to make it available for sophomores, juniors and seniors.
“It’s definitely something that we’re going to have to come back and look at our programming with,” Hyer said. “I think students and families will have to make decisions based around the credit hours that they’re limited to. I think we can be strategic in what we offer students. I believe that we exist for a reason. I believe that career pathways are really important for students to explore, and I think that there is a benefit to taking that along with college core classes.”
Harris believes that the CCSD system will do its best to adjust to HB-444 to provide students as many opportunities as they can.
“We literally have our job because of students. So at the end of the day, if we’re not serving students, what are we doing? All the adult issues and other stuff? Yeah, they exist, but if it doesn’t benefit a student, why are we talking about (it)?” Harris said. “When people ask me, ‘Why do I do this work? Why am I here till every day doing this?’ Because I want to do what I can to make it better.”
Story by Maya Cornish
Package by Ireland McCage
