Amid pandemic, UW-Green Bay jumps in to help high school students complete college credit
Green Bay, Wis.—When a national learning program was obstructed because of COVID-19, UW-Green Bay figured out a way for participating high school students to fulfill the curriculum and earn college credit.
Students taking the rigorous “Project Lead the Way” courses at their high schools earn college credit when they pass an exam at the end of the program. When the global pandemic shut schools across the state, schools could no longer proctor an exam, leaving disappointed students without a pathway to earn college credit.
Fortunately, UW-Green Bay’s Division of Continuing Education and Community Engagement and the College of Science, Engineering, and Technology were able to work together to adapt the College Credit in High School program to make it possible for 138 students from 63 high schools across Wisconsin to earn college credit, just like they’d planned.
The Division’s K-12 and Community Relations staff worked proactively with Engineering faculty to vet instructors and work with districts to communicate program information. They also worked with Student Services staff in the Registrar and Bursar offices, moving quickly to fulfill the student service needs of the program. Departments across the University deployed to make the opportunity happen, demonstrating enterprise and responsiveness to its Wisconsin school district partners.
The College Credit in High School program provides dual enrollment for high school students with participating high schools, enabling students to earn high school and college credit for the same class. Collectively, the opportunity saves Wisconsin high school students millions of dollars in reduced tuition. Students also jumpstart their college education, setting themselves up for success. During the 2019-20 academic year, more than 2,600 students enrolled in UW-Green Bay’s College Credit in High School classes, offered at 70 high schools across the state.
For more information on the program visit: www.uwgb.edu/lli or contact Meagan Strehlow, Director of K-12 and Community Relations, at 920-465-2356.
About the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is a comprehensive public institution offering undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs to more than 8,700 students with campus locations in Green Bay, Marinette, Manitowoc and Sheboygan. Established in 1965 on the border of Green Bay, the University and its campuses are centers of cultural enrichment, innovation and learning. The Green Bay campus is home to one of the Midwest’s most prolific performing arts centers, a nationally recognized 4,000-seat student recreation center, D-I athletics, an award-winning nine-hole golf course and a five-mile recreational trail and arboretum, which is free and open to the public. This four-campus University transforms lives and communities through student-focused teaching and research, innovative learning opportunities, powerful connections and a problem-solving approach to education. UW-Green Bay’s main campus is centrally located, close to both the Door County resort area and the dynamic economies of Northeast Wisconsin, the Fox Valley region and the I-43 corridor. UW-Green Bay offers in-demand programs in science, engineering and technology; business; health, education and social welfare; and arts, humanities and social sciences. For more information, visit www.uwgb.edu.
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