Dual credit courses give Gibraltar students a head start

Students at Gibraltar Area School District are finding out that you can earn credit for UW-Green Bay and Northeast Wisconsin Technical College without breaking your piggy bank for gas money. Last spring, Gibraltar started working with a pair of higher education partners to develop the framework for offering dual credit courses on campus. Students can take classes in Spanish, psychology, literature, and 3-D art design and earn credits toward a degree at UW-Green Bay. The offerings are similar for NWTC credits, with students having the option to take psychology, sociology, and most business courses. They also have the opportunity to take the Advanced Placement (AP) test for the subjects for college credit that is more universally accepted. Principal Jim DeBroux credits the students and the staff for helping the program thrive in its infancy.

DeBroux says one of the most significant advantages of dual-credit courses is the money you can save before applying for college. According to the Education Data Initiative, the average credit hour is approximately $390 for in-state students, which can more than triple when you go out of state for college or attend a private institution. That is up over 3 percent from last year and likely double what was spent 20 years ago.

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