College classes offered for GHS students

The Gatesville Independent School District continues to provide its students with opportunities to excel in college classes even while they are still attending Gatesville High School.

The GISD Board of Trustees approved both a memorandum of understanding with Temple College for the dual credit program and also an agreement to continue the OnRamps cooperative program with the University of Texas at Austin.

The MOU with Temple College allows eligible GISD students to continue coursework at the Texas Bioscience Institute. GISD pays the $150 fee per student.

Through this and similar opportunities, many of the district's high achieving students have been able to take several college classes while still enrolled at GHS, and some have even earned two-year associate college degrees before graduating from high school.

"It's a great program," said GISD Superintendent Barrett Pollard. "They can rack up two years of college while still in high school

GISD students have also been successful in UT's OnRamps program, which allows them to take a variety of collegiate classes and obtain university credit while attending GHS. These distance learning classes also follow a dual enrollment model.

GISD pays a subsidized rate for its students to enroll in UT courses. The fee is $249 per student - or $199 for those who are eligible to participate in the free and reduced price lunch program, along with per course cost of $149 – or $99 for those eligible for free and reduced cost lunches.

Courses available for students include:

* Foundation of Arts and Entertainment Technologies

* Introduction to Biology and lab

* College Chemistry: Principles of Chemistry I with lab

* College Chemistry: Principles of Chemistry II with lab

* Thriving in Our Digital World

* Earth, Wind & Fire: An Introduction to Geoscience

* United States History 1492-1865

* United States History Since 1865

* College Algebra

* Discovery Precalculus: A Creative and Connected Approach

* Mechanics, Heat and Sound: General Physics Technical Course I with lab

* Electromagnetism, Optics and Nuclear Physics: General Physics Technical Course II

* Introduction to Rhetoric: Reading, Writing and Research

* Reading and Writing and Rhetoric of American Identity

* Elementary Statistical Methods

* Quantum Computing

"These are UT classes – rigorous college courses," Pollard said.

"I received a parent comment that this was the most wonderful thing – we're glad to be able to partner with the University of Texas on this," said GISD Board President Charles Ament.