Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Dual enrollment multiplies benefits

Photos and story by James Hill

by Susan HerefordThe recent reorganization of the state board of higher education by Gov. Kulongoski promises a closer look at, among other things, dual enrollments between Oregon”s state universities and community colleges. The governor, with former-Gov. Neil Goldschmidt now chairing the board, wants to give students a better shot at transferring to four-year schools from the community college.Dual enrollment agreements are not new to PCC or to several other Oregon community colleges. This March marked a four-year anniversary for PCC’s first dual enrollment agreement, a contract signed by former PCC President Dan Moriarty and then-Oregon State University President Paul Risser to allow students at both institutions dual enrollment status at the two schools. The agreement came about after teams from both schools worked to meld together admissions and registration, financial aid, student transcripts and grades, and tuition (students pay each school’s tuition).PCC then worked out a deal with Portland State University for a similar partnership and created agreements with Oregon Institute of Technology and Western Governor’s University. There are approximately 2,750 students taking advantage of the dual enrollment agreements.Work has begun to market more actively to high school students and counselors.Michelle Sandelin, director of admissions for OSU, said the agreements are a positive step and relieve financial anxiety for students and their parents shopping for alternatives to the four-year price tag. She recently presented information at David Douglas High School, devoting the last segment of her talk to dual enrollment. "You should have seen the relief on the family’s faces," said Sandelin. "They told me, ‘This is a great option, we can afford this.’"It is easier, a lot of choices, more freedom," said Sandelin. "Students from Portland can take classes in the summer at OSU … There are no worries about the transcript. We’ve created a crosswalk (for students)." In addition to Portland, Oregon State currently has agreements with several other community colleges in the state – Linn-Benton, the first and a model, in Albany; Central Oregon in Bend; Chemeketa in Salem; Southwestern in Coos Bay; and in 2005, Umpqua in Roseburg comes on line. OSU transfer student Lisa Deskin is a believer. She dual enrolled, and following two years at PCC, began her upper-division coursework at the university in Corvallis. The 29-year-old bioresource research major said the path would be a good choice for many students. "Take as many classes at the community college as you can; it is a huge resource," she said. "The classes are smaller, there is more personalized attention and lower-division faculty have more time to help you." She said an internship while at PCC through physics instructor Toby Dittrich was a "life changing experience." A high school drop out from Des Moines, Iowa, Deskin is the first in her family to go to college, and recently earned a national award for her presentation to the 19th Annual Minorities in Agriculture Natural Resources and Related Science conference for OSU.Twenty-year-old student leader Kashea Kilson-Anderson says the enrollment agreement made it possible not only take classes at both schools, but to participate as a student leader at both campuses. Plus, he’s saving money. He is majoring in Black Studies with a minor in psychology. He’s currently president of the Black Student Union at PSU and co-chairs the statewide Oregon Students of Color Coalition. He left Wilson High School at age 15, struggling with his grades and the environment. He eventually enrolled in PCC”s high school completion program and said it took some time to get himself back on academic track. When he was put on academic probation, it was the wake-up call he needed."I made a definite commitment to get things done," he said. "I have a lot invested in PCC and them in me."Dennis Bailey-Fougnier, director of admissions at PCC’s Sylvania Campus, said there are many benefits to the programs between PCC and the four-year partners, but paramount for students is the financial aid benefit. "It allows them to combine products. This is huge. They can package financial aid and get everything lined up." Bailey-Fougnier expects the savings to be $2,000 year. He also noted increased availability for scholarships when students can be counted as four-year school students.