at college
taking shape
By FULLER ROYAL
The selection process for the county’s new early college high school could begin next week when committee members from the Whiteville City Schools, the Columbus County Schools and Southeastern Community College meet.
To be known as the Southeastern Early College (SEC) the school is scheduled to open in August on the SCC campus.
The school, a pet project of Gov. Mike Easley, is designed for students who don’t quite fit into the traditional school environment.
Students will mix with college students and college courses. Students who complete the school’s five-year program will not only have a high school diploma but also an associate’s degree – all at no cost.
Applications for principal were slow to come in and organizers now feel like they have enough candidates to do a proper screening and interview.
The school received its initial approval in March and was given enough starter money to bring a principal on board.
Whoever is hired will have only a few months to put the finishing touches on the school, which will start with 50 freshman-level students.
Fewer than 30 applications for those 50 seats have been received. The state is requiring a minimum of 50 students this year and 100 students next year – freshman and sophomore grades combined – in order to qualify for a state-funded principal.
The two school systems have been targeting eighth-graders who might feel more comfortable in a college environment.
Parents have been contacted by school guidance departments, by mail and through advertising in local newspapers.
There have also been six stories in The News Reporter concerning the school.
Columbus County Schools Superintendent Dan Strickland said that counselors in the schools with eighth grades are renewing their efforts to interest students in SEC.
Parents interested in their rising freshmen enrolling at SEC should contact their school counselors.