Sadie Jacobs dreams of working at Disney World. She thinks the Early Middle College program she is starting will help her achieve that goal faster and more affordably than the traditional college route.
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Photo by Shandra MartinezEarly Middle College student Sadie Jacobs
“I want to prepare for the college experience and see what it will be like. So, I chose this program because I get to step in and see the classes and get my associate degree earlier than others. And I think that's a lot easier,” says Sadie, 16, an Otsego High School student who wants to earn an arts degree. “My parents are really proud that I signed up.”
The Early Middle College program is a partnership between the Allegan Area Educational Service Agency (Allegan AESA) and Lake Michigan College that allows high school students to earn high school and college credits at the same time. Students start the three-year program in their junior year of high school and can earn up to 61 credits toward an associate degree tuition-free, saving the cost of two years of tuition.
The courses the students take are all part of the usual college curriculum. Every school district in Allegan County participates. Students apply during their sophomore year and undergo an application process that includes an interview.
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Photo by Shandra MartinezEvy Houser, dean of early college education for the Allegan AESA.
“We have 50 spots. It's always our goal to fill those spots. We also want to make the application system as easy and accessible as possible to remove any barriers and ensure that any student in Allegan County can apply,” says Evy Houser, dean of early college education for the Allegan AESA.
No one who met the criteria was turned down. First, students must meet Lake Michigan College's admissions requirements. They must have an unweighted GPA of 2.5 or earn a 5 or better on the Writeplacer and write an essay.
Learning will take place at the Allegan Tech Center. Students attend half-days for the first two years and then become full-time college students, no longer reporting to their high school in the third year.
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Photo by Shandra MartinezEarly Middle College visit the Lake Michigan College campus before beginning the program.
Boot camp, tour prepares students
Sadie is one of 37 students starting the program, representing the class of 2027 and the program’s 10th cohort. They attended a weeklong boot camp in June that introduced them to the technology they will use in their LMC work, including Microsoft Office 365 and Canvas, the program used by LMC instructors to communicate with students about assignments and grades.
“We spent four days in June at our college summer success boot camp, getting them used to using all their systems, tools, and resources. We just practiced that intensely for four days,” says Houser, who has led the program for six years.
Sadie says she feels prepared for the next three years after attending the boot camp.
“The online programs are a lot different than my high school ones and they're more fancy, like Canvas,” she says. “So I liked that I got introduced to them so I didn't have to go full-on right into college — I think I would have been overwhelmed. But having that summer boot camp really helped me figure everything out.”
In mid-July, she and the other students arrived by school bus for their first visit to LMC’s Benton Harbor campus. The sprawling 262-acre community college features a lake, natural area, athletic fields, and nature and jogging trails along with education buildings and student housing.
This orientation provided a refresher on what was covered in boot camp, and another prep session will be held a week before classes start in September.
“We walk alongside them every step of the way,” Houser says. “That first year is just a lot of hand-holding and progress monitoring. We check in on them, and we check their grades."
Houser says she has two support mentors who check in with students, asking about their well-being and academics. The mentors have helped with students’ academic progress and improved retention. The program has a success rate of over 85%.
“Our mantra is go to class, do your work, ask questions, get help. They all have the ability to pass their classes and do well,” Houser says.
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Photo courtesy Carey StolsonburgA four-day boot camp prepares Early Middle College students for what is ahead.
Adjusting to college work
Sadie, who will be a junior, says she will focus on being organized because she’ll have to balance her high school and college classes with the demands of being in the marching band.
“I’m probably just going to have a planner and set everything out there. I'm going to look at the syllabus and exam dates and just see what the homework is going to be. Then, I will meet with my high school teachers and figure out homework stuff and everything,” she says.
She has a computer for LMC and one for high school, with different emails for each.
“I got a laptop for my birthday, both for college and for personal use. I also have a school one that my school provides for us,” she says.
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Photo by Shandra MartinezEarly Middle College student Caleb Braybrooks
Caleb Braybrooks, 16, a junior at Plainwell High School, says he was drawn to the program by its promise of saving money and time.
“I'll be at least a year ahead of everybody else in my class, so I'm saving time and money,” he says. “I plan on studying music. I would like to teach music at the high school or collegiate level.”
Caleb participates in his high school’s choral program. Over the summer, he was selected to travel to Europe.
“My parents were all about me saving money, so they were excited when they found out that I had been accepted,” he says.
Caleb says he is a little nervous about balancing high school with college.
“I’m working on developing a strategy. I'm really bad with time management, so that's something I'm working on at the moment. But I will be talking to other people who have done this program to help develop a plan that works.”
Caleb will be taking classes at his high school in the morning and go to the tech center later in afternoon for his college work.
Students start classes in their junior year, take more courses in their senior year, and finish their 13th year, says Carey Stolsonburg, Allegan AESA’s communications coordinator.
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Photo courtesy Carey StolsonburgEarly Middle College students earn credits at Lake Michigan College while still attending high school.
The program is 90% face-to-face, with a few exceptions. Instructors travel to the Allegan Tech Center. Dual-enrolled students can take some courses online, but the early middle college model is face-to-face.
Schools use their allotted state funding to cover the tuition and books all three years. The additional third year of the program benefits students and schools respectively.