The new College at Eastern Handbook was presented at the Eastern Regional Board of Education meeting
Starting next year, students will be able to earn credits at Rowan College at Burlington County while still earning high school credits at Eastern.
Robert Cloutier presented the new College at Eastern Handbook at the monthly Eastern Regional High School board of education meeting on Dec. 21. The handbook details all the opportunities Eastern students have to earn college credits while in high school.
“Over the last couple of years, we’ve really expanded opportunities for our students to earn college credits while they are at Eastern,” said Cloutier, director of curriculum, instruction and professional development. “Our goal is to provide for parents and students, even beginning with eighth-grade parent night as they are planning their courses for ninth grade at Eastern, how they can look at their four years as not only earning their high school diploma, but earning college credit as well.”
Cloutier said these college credits can save students and their families thousand of dollars as well as possibly shorten the amount of time it takes then to earn their associate’s or bachelor’s degree.
The handbook brings together key opportunities for students to earn college credits. The first one is Eastern expanding AP course offerings. Starting next year, the high school will be offering AP classes to freshmen for the first time.
The second way would be through a dual credit program. Eastern has had a partnership with Camden County College for many years, and starting next year, it will add a partnership with Rowan College at Burlington County.
“We’re going to have a relationship with them for our students to earn dual credits through Rowan College, which will create additional benefits toward Rowan University because of their relationship with Rowan College,” Cloutier said. “These dual credit offerings are high school courses taught by Eastern staff members that are evaluated by community college as being equivalent to a college course at Camden County College or Rowan College. By earning an A or B, or sometimes C, students then, for a fee of $150, pay to the college, earn three credits on a Rowan College transcript. They would have a college transcript while earning high school credits at Eastern.”
This year, Eastern created a new opportunity for students to earn credit at Camden County College by offering college courses on Eastern’s campus.
“We have, in the afternoons, Camden County professors coming to our campus, and they are teaching Camden County courses in Eastern classrooms and earning Camden County College certification,” he said. “With the new bell schedule, this worked to the school’s benefit.”
