Harrisburg – Students looking to earn college credits while still in high school could soon have expanded options available through the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education—and they won’t even have to leave their regular classrooms to take advantage of them.

Qualified high school teachers will work with faculty from selected PASSHE universities to teach the courses to their students. High school juniors and seniors will be able to sign up for classes typically designed for college freshman.

The classes will use the same syllabus—including objectives, content, college-level textbooks, assigned readings, instructional materials, assignments, tests, assessments and grading scales—as the courses taught on campus by university faculty. Students will be assessed the same way—taking the same tests and completing the same assignments, including papers, projects and classroom presentations.

“These are the same courses the students would be taking if they were enrolled at any of our universities,” said PASSHE Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs Jim Moran. “This is an opportunity for high-achieving students to get a real leg up on their college education, even before they set foot on campus. By allowing the courses to be taught in the high schools by qualified high school faculty working hand-in-hand with university faculty, an early start to college should be available to many more students.”

The program already is active through California University of Pennsylvania and could be expanded to include Edinboro and Lock Haven universities of Pennsylvania over the next two years. Depending on the success of the program, it eventually could be offered state-wide.

The number of “dual enrollment” programs—in which high school students earn college credit—has been growing. The most common programs involve university faculty teaching the courses, either at the high school or by having the students come to campus to take them.

Having high school teachers teach the classes is a newer model. PASSHE worked with the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), its faculty union, to develop guidelines for what has been named the PASSHE Concurrent Enrollment Program.

“Our organization firmly believes in expanding access to quality college-level classes,” said APSCUF President Steve Hicks. “We are pleased to have been able to work with the Chancellor's Office to provide eligible high school students with the opportunity to experience introductory college courses under the guidance of our experienced university faculty.”

High schools that wish to participate in the program first must sign a cooperative agreement with a participating PASSHE university. To be eligible to teach a course under the program, a teacher must hold at least a master’s degree with graduate level coursework in the discipline of the course to be taught.

A PASSHE faculty member who has taught the same course on campus within the last three years will be designated as the “lead faculty” for the course and is responsible for overseeing course development, implementation and evaluation.

In order to be eligible to take a class through the program, a student must be considered “college ready” for the specific course. College readiness may be demonstrated in a variety of ways, including achieving a qualifying score on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA), SAT or the ACT, and overall GPA.

The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with nearly 117,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 454,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.