ARC’s Dual Enrollment program has high school students ahead of the game

Students can take college courses while they are still enrolled in high school

Jeralynn Querubin, Staff Writer|March 25, 2023

Dual enrollment student Jose Morales and the College Tour Club of Grant Union High School in front of the Hoover Tower at Stanford University for a campus tour. (Photo courtesy of Jose Morales)

High school students enrolled at American River College are completing college course credits early. With the Dual Enrollment program, the journey to getting an associates degree becomes a lot faster.

The program allows high school students to take classes at ARC, or another community college, in order to earn college credits and high school credits at the same time. Other local community colleges, including Sacramento City College and Cosumnes River College, also offer this program.

The Twin Rivers Unified School District offers dual enrollment with ARC for high school students within the district. Students can be one step ahead with their college credits while being flexible with their high school schedule.

According to Jonathan Martinez, a dual enrollment counselor at Grant Union High School, high school students can take college courses as early as their freshman year. The program allows students to potentially get an A.A. degree in social sciences by the time they graduate.

Students can benefit from taking dual enrollment classes by taking the class during a monitored period of their school day, according to Martinez. Most classes are offered online, but students may take classes in-person.

Jose Morales, a high school student at Grant, is a student enrolled at ARC and is a part of the dual enrollment program. He is currently taking Spanish courses at ARC, plays football for the school and is also president of the College Tour Club.

Morales balances everything while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. However, there was one thing he had trouble balancing with his dual enrollment classes.

“The only struggle I had was during football. With practice, [the classes] would be manageable,” Morales said. “I would get off at 6:30, but when I had an [Advanced Placement] test the next day, it was hard.”

According to Martinez, students can take courses at ARC that are offered at the high school.

Another thing that students can benefit from dual enrollment, is they do not have to take the AP exam to a course if they are taking it at ARC.

“I would definitely recommend people to take dual enrollment,” Morales said. “You get your credits a lot faster and you get college credits without taking the end of the year exam.”