Lowell High School Students Tout Success of Early College Program at City-Wide Roundtable

Photo By: Cameron Morseberger

Originally Published in the Lowell Sun on April 8th, 2023

By: Cameron Morseberger

LOWELL — It takes about eight minutes to walk from Lowell High School to Middlesex Community College. That half-mile distance opens a world of opportunities for 3,200 high schoolers and future college students.

Early College Lowell acts as the bridge, allowing high school students to take MCC courses for free and earn college credit prior to graduation. Enrollees gathered at City Hall Wednesday evening to discuss the impact of the program before School Committee members, local administrators and representatives from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education.

About 4,000 Lowell High students have taken more than 5,100 classes through the Early College program, earning nearly 10,000 total credits toward a college degree. The program, also supported by Project LEARN, estimates families have saved $2.47 million.

Joel Boyd, superintendent of Lowell Public Schools, said he considers Lowell to be “the greatest education city in the commonwealth,” only benefited by the community’s diversity that allows students to learn “in a global environment.”

The proximity between Lowell High School and Middlesex Community College is something he and MCC President Phil Sisson “no longer view as a divide but as a corridor,” Boyd said.

“Our young people can walk literally down the street from a high school classroom to a college classroom, and what that enables us to do here in Lowell is to make good on our promise to our community in delivering on a high quality public education as a fundamental civil right for our children,” Boyd said. “We believe that, while college is a personal choice, preparation for college is a public responsibility, and we work every day to deliver on that responsibility for our community.”

Juniors and seniors can sign up for any of the 10 three-credit electives offered in the upcoming school year, including African American Literature, Graphic Design and Introduction to Engineering. Ninth and tenth graders can take one-credit seminars: First Year Experience, Career Exploration and The Choices We Make.

As opposed to Advanced Placement classes, where students must achieve a particular score on an end-of-year standardized exam to receive college credit, Early College allows students to earn college credit upon appropriately completing the course, just as any other high school class.

The program is considered dual enrollment, but most of the approved college courses are taught at LHS “by certified high school faculty,” according to the website.

Christa Nagbe, a senior at Lowell High, will graduate this spring with a total of 21 college credits, 18 of which she achieved through Early College. Nagbe’s now enrolled in English Composition 1 and 2, Film and Society and Introduction to Criminal Justice. She remarked that her sister calls her “a college girly.”

When asked how the school system can improve the Early College system or curriculum, Nagbe advised administrators to “keep all the Early College classes coming.” The program has allowed Nagbe to explore career options and visualize her future, she said.

“Without these classes, I wouldn’t have known that I had an interest in psychology and I wanted to do psychology and that I wanted to minor in sociology,” Nagbe said. “It just gives me a better opportunity and a better understanding as to how the workload is going to be like and how professors will treat me.”

LHS senior Nina Wolf said Early College “sets you apart” when it comes time to apply to colleges. Wolf, who will graduate with seven EC credits, said her African American Literature course allowed her to see her potential.

“You surprise yourself in that class with what you can do,” Wolf said.

But once students leave LHS, their Early College journey doesn’t always end. Early College Promise allows graduates to enroll in MCC full time for a year, completely free of charge.

Lowell High sociology teacher James Callaghan and English teacher Deanna Stanford said their classes prioritize college readiness, instructing students on how to write and format a research paper and on what to expect once they graduate.

“My students will often come back and say, ‘You know, Dr. Stanford, your class was way harder than what we do in college,’” Stanford said. “And that’s to their benefit, because they learn the skills they need to do time management and be successful.”

Noe Ortega, the state’s commissioner for higher education, said work at the state-level often involves making decisions and investing in programs without hearing about the “transformational” impact on students and families.

Early College is also “building self-esteem” and proving to students that they are capable of more than they imagined, Ortega said. The program is now in 51 high schools in the state.

“Each one of them shared a story about how they’re so proud of being able to accomplish something that they never thought they could,” Ortega said in an interview. “I think that’s really the secret for how you’re going to become successful, being able to not be intimidated by the task.”

Hearing students share how they’ve found their passions and voices inspired School Committee member and former teacher Stacey Thompson. She expressed her pride in the high schoolers and encouraged them to continue speaking about their experience.

“First of all, you guys are amazing,” Thompson said. “And I have to say, this warms my heart, because it’s a lot for us to see where the next generation is going, and it’s in capable hands, so that’s an awesome thing.”

Some LHS students will graduate with an entire year’s worth of college credit, LZ Nunn, executive director of Project LEARN, wrote in a statement. That’s “the best deal around” for Lowell students and their families, she added.

“The Lowell Early College and Early College Promise programs have benefited from a unique public and private partnership which brings in resources from Middlesex Community College, Lowell Public Schools, Project LEARN and regional funders, like the Smith Family Foundation and Balfour Foundation,” Nunn stated. “We’re super fortunate to have a talented cross-organizational team who is passionate about bringing free college to our high school students that is truly helping to shape students’ career paths and future opportunities.”