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The successful delivery of early postsecondary opportunities - especially dual credit – relies heavily on the collaborative efforts of K-12 and their higher education partners. Each partner must have clearly defined roles that focus on providing access to high-quality programs for students. These roles vary by EPSO program type and should be tailored to the unique context of each partnership; with that said, they should generally define: who is providing advising, who is leading recruitment efforts, who is providing and/or connecting students to wraparound supports (e.g. tutoring, test preparation, transportation, etc.), who is hiring and training instructors, and who is developing the curricula.
Promising Practices
Promising Practices
Determine the purpose of the EPSO and how it connects to the school's broader vision for student success.
Understand campus partners' incentives and constraints to offering early postsecondary opportunities.
Establish Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) that clearly state roles and responsibilities and how each partner will uphold quality standards and provide supports for students.
Develop and communicate articulation and transfer agreements to ensure that courses will meaningfully apply toward a postsecondary degree or credential.
Have dedicated personnel at the district, high school, and college to coordinate the delivery of early postsecondary opportunities.
Meet regularly with campus partners to evaluate the effectiveness of the current system (e.g., reviewing calendars and identifying any course sequencing misalignments that may impact students' ability to take a course).
Develop clear strategies to increase the number of qualified instructors for early postsecondary opportunities (e.g., incentives for graduate coursework, paid professional development for AP and IB, grow-your-own educator programs).
Expand partnerships between districts and institutions to offer on-campus, virtual, and hybrid options - or to share credentialed instructors.
Bright Spots - Partnerships
Bright Spots - Partnerships
Check out these Kentucky examples and learn how they leverage partnerships and collaboration to further student success.
Boone County Schools Early College Program provides students the opportunity to earn 24 college credits or more in one year that transfer to any Kentucky public two-year or four-year college. Through a partnership with Northern Kentucky University, Thomas More University, and Gateway Community and Technical College (GCTC), Boone County students attend college for a half day at the GCTC Florence/Union campus. Students are provided with college-level experiences in high school that better prepare them to succeed in postsecondary after graduation. Contact the team to learn more.
Shelby County Public Schools has created a College and Career Readiness Coordinator position to help with advising capacity for students as well as to improve systems and processes around dual credit enrollment at two high schools. By continuing to fund this position after earlier grant funds ended, the dual credit program has expanded and student participation has increased. Eligible students and their families receive a letter that notifies them about dual credit opportunities and an invitation to an information night held at their school. Students continue to receive one-on-one support from counselors as well as the College and Career Readiness Coordinator while enrolled in dual credit courses.
The School-Based Scholars program (SBS) is offering a scholarship that will allow Kentucky high school teachers who need additional graduate hours to earn the credits needed to teach dual-credit courses in their high schools. Scholarship recipients will receive curated advising from the department that houses their chosen area of study to help them succeed.
This scholarship is designed to give interested teachers the opportunity to earn up to 18 graduate hours needed to be credentialed to teach dual-credit courses in one of three content areas: communication, English, or history. It is preferred, but not required, that KY high school teachers who are interested in the Dual-Credit Instructor Credentialing Scholarship have earned a master’s degree from a regionally accredited university.
Where can I learn more?
You can explore more topics related to partnerships below.
Quick Guide Resources
Quick Guide Resources
Financial Aid Opportunities and Contacts (2 of 2) (2).pdfFinancial Aid Opportunities and Contacts (2 of 2) (3).pdfKY Independent with DC (1).pdfResources for Practitioners
Resources for Practitioners
Identify open apprenticeship opportunities at Bluegrass CTC.
Learn more about how to partner with KCTCS and how to navigate the dual credit system.
Identify best practices to developing articulation agreements.
Additional Resources
Additional Resources
Resources for Practitioners:
Education Trust Dual Enrollment Resources: Ed Trust lists a variety of resources for practitioners to consider as they seek to expand dual enrollment programs and partnerships.
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