Running Start gains momentum with LRHS students

In search of new opportunity, many LRHS sophomores and juniors are planning on enrolling in Running Start in the fall.

As defined by the United States Department of Education, “The term ‘dual enrollment’ refers to an arrangement where students are enrolled in courses that count for both high school and college credit.”

Beginning with Minnesota’s 1985 Postsecondary Enrollment Options Program, similar state mandated initiatives have been developed in 47 states, helping to keep “students academically challenged throughout their high school career.”

For Washington state, the most popular dual enrollment initiative is Running Start.

Established in 1990 through the legislature’s Learning by Choice Law, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction explained, “Running Start is intended to provide students a program option consisting of attendance at certain institutions of higher education and the simultaneous earning of high school and college/university credit.”

Through the Running Start Program, high school juniors and seniors are able to earn credit at Washington’s community colleges, technical colleges, and state universities, tuition free. The cost of tuition is subtracted from the student’s home district’s state allocated funds.

Running Start is growing in popularity.

According to a report from the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University, participation in Running Start grew by 30 percent from 2011 to 2016, totaling 24,217 students in the 2015-2016 school year.

The increasing participation in Running Start can be seen within Lind-Ritzville High School.

Kierstin Witt, who will be participating in Running Start at Eastern Washington University (EWU) for her senior year, explained, “I’m motivated to do Running Start because I love the opportunities it provides and I really want to experience the college environment.”

Lacey Miller, who will also be engaging in Running Start at EWU this fall, said, “What motivated me was the amount of extra credits I will get, as well as the more diverse classes that I will have the option to take.”

She added, “I also like the fact of being exposed to college life a little earlier, in order to make the transition easier.”

Planning on enrolling in Big Bend Community College’s Running Start program, Brooke Koch sees the opportunity as a chance to earn a degree faster.

“After high school I will end up going to get my AA anyways,” she explained, adding, “If I can start that degree sooner, then why not take the chance and get to take an elective class I have an interest in to help me figure out big decisions for the future?”

Bryce Hansen, aiming for Running Start at EWU, is in search of academic rigor.

He explained, “Even though I know it will be a tough challenge, I really feel like it’s what I need.”

In addition to pull factors, there are some push factors driving students away from high school.

One student believed, “Our school has lost a lot of motivation and character… as much as I am so in love with our amazing little community, I’m tired of seeing people mistreat or take it for granted.”

The student added, “I feel that by doing running start, it could send a message to the school and the students that we need a change.”

Another student gave their opinion, “High school is busywork and doesn’t allow kids to explore what they will do in the future... I want to gear my classes to what I want to do after high school.”

Though it does provide more options and a window into the college experience, there remain opportunities for college prep and course rigor within the high school.

Advanced Placement courses and online classes, as noted by StudyPoint.com, “may well prove more challenging than an intro-level college course.”

Further, dual enrollment is known to dominate students’ time and often prevents students from developing as leaders in high school.

“A college course should enhance a student’s resume, but not at the expense of other resume-enhancing activities,” Studypoint.com continued.

Given the pros and cons of Running Start, many students have already decided to make the commitment. For those involved, there is a Running Start information night for EWU at their Downtown Spokane campus on April 10, and for Big Bend Community College in Moses Lake on April 26.

For those still in question of the program, Peyton Curtis, a two-year participant in Running Start at EWU, advised, “Don’t do Running Start just to get out of high school. Yes, it’s nice having three hours of class a day, but what [students] might not know is that you have to do a lot of independent learning.”

Regardless of whether a student decides to pursue opportunities through dual enrollment or within LRHS, success can be achieved through hard work.