California Coalition of Early & Middle Colleges Announces Dual Enrollment Grant

Ontario, CA, October 26, 2016 --(PR.com)-- On the heels of the passage of AB 288 and AB 2364, California policies supporting the implementation of dual enrollment programs, the California Coalition of Early & Middle Colleges (CCEMC) announced they have received a $100,000 grant from The James Irvine Foundation to support the growth and development of dual enrollment programs across California.

CCEMC chose this week to announce the grant award, as the organization is hosting the Third Annual Conference, Statewide Collaboration: Dual Enrollment Programs, Early & Middle Colleges at the Ontario Doubletree Hotel, October 27-28, 2016. With over 400 educators registered representing high schools, school districts, and California community colleges, the conference is the premier event in California supporting research and collaboration on effective practices in dual enrollment. Formerly hosted by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) and underwritten by grant funding, the conference is now hosted by CCEMC with continued partnership from the CCCCO which oversees community colleges in California and the California Department of Education (CDE) which oversees K-12 schools and districts in California.

The funding provided by The James Irvine Foundation will support CCEMC as it develops the capacity to provide peer coaching, professional development, and technical assistance in order to increase the number of California students who obtain a substantial amount of college units concurrently while attending high school.

“Currently, over 17,000 students are provided the opportunity to graduate high school with both a high school diploma and 30 to 60 transferable units and/or an associate’s degree through the middle and early college high school movement. Funding from The James Irvine Foundation will allow CCEMC to foster a similar environment where students who attend comprehensive high schools will have the opportunity to graduate with college transferable units therefore decreasing the time needed to obtain a college degree,” according to Sherry Balian, CCEMC Board President. “Early and Middle College High Schools are a unique educational model where students are attending both high school classes and college courses simultaneously. I have had the honor of being the principal of Middle College High School at San Joaquin Delta College for 12 years. I can state, that for the first time in my education career I am involved in an educational model that works the majority of the time with the majority of all students. This is the reason I believe that dual enrollment is a method to connect students to their education and prepare students to be college and career ready.”

Conference Schedule
Thursday, October 27
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Pre-Conference Site Visits
2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Afternoon Mini-Session: Navigating the Opportunities and Challenges for California Community College and Secondary Partnerships for Underrepresented Students
5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Opening Reception, Elected Officials Welcome Conference Attendees
6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Evening Mini-Session: Navigating the Opportunities and Challenges for California Community College and Secondary Partnerships for Underrepresented Students
Friday, October 28
8:15 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Opening Remarks, Keynote by Assembly Member Chris Holden
9:45 a.m. to 12:05 p.m. Workshops
12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. Lunch, Student Panel
1:50 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. Workshops
4:20 p.m. to 5 p.m. Conference Closing

CCEMC’s Mission Statement
The mission of CCEMC is to promote and expand best practices that develop and sustain supportive environments to strengthen K-12 and college partnerships, enabling high school students to transition successfully to post-secondary institutions college and career ready, with substantial college units earned through dual enrollment.

About CCEMC
In collaboration with partner colleges, the California Department of Education and the California Community College’s Chancellor’s Office, CCEMC collects data to substantiate dual enrollment and early and middle college initiatives, publicizes schools’ work and successes, and informs the educational community about statutes and policy reform that impact the dual enrollment and early and middle college. CCEMC provides professional learning and networking opportunities and facilitates ongoing dialogue statewide with member schools and partners with a focus on promoting and expanding dual enrollment programs. CCEMC partnerships with the California Department of Education, California Community College Chancellor’s Office, local community colleges and K-12 LEAs have provided school leaders the support to understand, observe and implement high quality dual enrollment programming. The organization’s vision for California is that all K-12 and high school districts will have dual enrollment formal partnership agreements and all 113 Community Colleges will have early/middle college high schools.

Research studies repeated show that early college students outperform their peers nationwide by
• Graduating from high school at a much higher rate than the state averages;
• Earning free transferable college credits while in high school, including the Associate’s Degree; and
• Persevering in four-year colleges earning their Bachelor’s Degree and beyond.

The cornerstone of our organization is the peer coaching for dual enrollment programs, especially associated with AB288, and targeted toward K-12 Districts.
About The James Irvine Foundation

The James Irvine Foundation is a private, nonprofit grantmaking foundation dedicated to expanding opportunity for the people of California to participate in a vibrant, successful, and inclusive society. The Foundation’s grantmaking focuses on expanding economic and political opportunity for families and young adults who are working but struggling with poverty. Since 1937 the Foundation has provided over $1.5 billion in grants to more than 3,600 nonprofit organizations throughout California. With about $2 billion in assets, the Foundation made grants of $74 million in 2015 for the people of California.