A presentation showing benefits of the agreement between Moore County Schools and Sandhills Community College (SCC) took place Monday. The presentation happened during the Moore County Board of Education’s regular business session.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreed to by SCC and the school board, students can take college courses, for both high school and college credit, for free. With some courses, however, there are associated fees.
Books are provided without cost.
Through the presentation, examples of student success, due to the Career and College Promise program (CCP), were shared. Increases in the number of career and technical credits earned were also cited.
Among those contributing to the program were Dr. Mike Metcalf, Amanda Dixon, and Career and College Promise counselors Josh Newton and Stacy Patterson.
Several benefits of the relationship were listed, including the ability for students to experience college while still living at home. Having college credits on a transcript, it was pointed out, also makes candidates more attractive to other academic institutions.
Additionally, students can qualify for a Sandhills Promise Scholarship. To be eligible for the scholarship, participants must be high school graduates, residents of Moore or Hoke County, have completed four CCP courses while in high school, and have maintained at least a C average in those courses.
As part of the presentation, contributors gave yearly numbers for the CCP program. In 2015-16, 636 high school juniors and seniors participated. The following academic year, there were 849 students. For 2017-18, there were 1,001 participants, while 989 students were involved last year.
Students took 1,291 courses in 2015-16. For the last academic year, the number of courses had increased to 2,562. In the first year highlighted (2015-16), 883 courses were taken for college credit. That number rose to 2,255 in 2018-19. In those courses, students must have obtained a grade of D or higher.
The next MOU for the program, which was approved by the board, runs from July 1, 2020 until June 30, 2025. Tuition and textbooks remain free for students.
~Written by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Dave Lukow.
Photo of Sandhills Community College by Sandhills Sentinel Photographer John Patota.
