College credit for high schoolers

Students in the Omaha Public Schools — and the entire metro area — may soon have two more ways to earn college credits during high school.

OPS most likely will apply to offer the rigourous International Baccalaureate program at Omaha Central High School and Lewis and Clark Middle School. Students who complete the program and score high enough on exams to earn a special diploma often start college as sophomores.

OPS also is considering making Northwest High School and Nathan Hale Middle School magnet schools focused on law and government. Northwest students could earn an associate's degree in related fields, along with their high school diploma.

A school board committee is expected to vote on the proposals on Sept. 30, with a final decision by the entire board on Oct. 5.

“I, for one, am terribly excited about this,” board member Nancy Huston said Monday when the ideas were discussed. “I would hope we get to see this.”

The international baccalaureate program was designed decades ago to provide a set rigorous, well-rounded curriculum to students who moved often internationally.

Across the country, just 670 high schools and 321 middle schools offer the program, now aimed at students who want to gain college standing or prove academic prowess when seeking admission to top colleges.

It's different from Advanced Placement courses, where students generally can select any number of classes and subjects.

With the baccalaureate program, students are required to take courses in all core subjects, write a thesis-like essay, complete community service and learn a foreign language. The middle school program is designed to prepare students for coursework in high school.

Susie Buffett's Sherwood Foundation would provide funding to cover planning and start-up costs. Buffett is a Central High alumni.

OPS must apply to the International Baccalaureate Organization to offer the program. The planning and selection process usually takes three years, so the first year of participation would be the 2012-13 school year, at the earliest.

Central would join Millard North and Lincoln High as Nebraska's only IB high schools. Lewis and Clark would join Millard North Middle in offering the program. A high school in Des Moines offers Iowa's only baccalaureate program.

OPS board members Nancy Kratky and Bambi Bartek questioned why Omaha Burke and Beveridge Magnet weren't recommended.

OPS officials said limited space at the schools is one reason.

The other: Under the Douglas-Sarpy County learning community's new diversity plan, students from another metro district will be admitted only when their family income helps improve the school's diversity. Central, a low-income school by the learning community definition, will have more spots than Burke for middle-class students from other metro school districts.

OPS students could apply to the four schools before students from other districts would be given that chance.

Although details are not yet specific, the idea is that Northwest students could earn an associate of arts degree in criminal justice.

Local community colleges offer several specializations in that area to prepare students for careers such as law enforcement, crime lab work, or a 911 dispatcher.

Earlier district surveys have suggested community interest in the study of law, government, public safety and public service. For OPS students to earn an associate degree, a college would need to be involved in the program.

If the school board approves the proposal, principals of both Northwest and Hale would get more input from students and the community before applying for federal funding to get the program going.

Sue Colvin, principal at Hale, and Herman Colvin, principal at Northwest, said Monday that they are eager to begin working with their staffs on the effort. The Colvins, who are married, said they had to keep plans quiet in case the recommendation received a cold reception from the school board.

“We're really excited for the opportunity,” Sue Colvin said.

Like Central and Lewis and Clark, the two schools would be a viable option for middle-class students from other districts who apply for entrance under the learning community's diversity plan.

This year Hale is attempting to increase achievement by adding time to its school day and lengthening its school year. The school also has struggled with declining enrollment.

Now is a critical time for the district to prepare to welcome students from across Douglas and Sarpy Counties, said OPS Superintendent John Mackiel.

“I believe we're looking at programs as a means to an end,” he said. “That ‘end' is an integrated, quality education across the two-county area.”

Contact the writer:

444-1037, michaela.saunders@owh.com

« Metro/Region

Share