High School Students Can Earn College Credit At Trinity Classical Academy

VALENCIA, Calif. - Feb. 11, 2016 - PRLog -- Students Can Earn Transferable College Credits Potentially Saving Students and Their Families over $30,000 in Tuition, Books and Supplies

Trinity Classical Academy now offers their junior and senior students the opportunity to participate in its Dual Credit Program and earn high school and college credits simultaneously for 11 of their existing Honors and AP Classes. The college credits Trinity students earn may transfer to over 650 colleges and universities in the country.

“We are so encouraged to be able to offer the Dual Credit Program to our students and families,” said Liz Caddow, co-founder and head of school, Trinity Classical Academy. “Because Trinity’s rigorous Upper School course of study is taught at an elevated level, the Honors and AP Classes in our Dual Credit Program were approved without any alterations to our curriculum or to the faculty that developed it.”

To enroll in the Dual Credit Program and earn college credit simultaneously, Trinity students who are taking any of the 11 qualifying classes must register and pay a $200 per course fee at Colorado Christian University or $300 per course fee at The Master’s College. Students must earn a grade of C- or better in order to receive college credit at CCU or The Master’s College, and are also encouraged to contact other institutions to confirm the transfer of credit as each one varies in how these courses are accepted. If the student takes an AP Class and also registers the course through the Dual Credit Program, the opportunities to transfer the course to different universities can be maximized.

“The Trinity students who take full advantage of this opportunity will be able to bypass some lower level classes at the college or university level, focus more quickly on their choice of study, and may also have the opportunity to add a minor or double major within 4 years,” said Christine Bacon, college advisor, Trinity Classical Academy. “The Dual Credit Program not only enhances Trinity’s commitment to preparing our students to excel in their college career, but equips them with tools to fully take advantage of all the opportunities that lie ahead.”

In a study conducted by the Smaller Learning Communities Program for the U.S. Department of Education titled “Dual Enrollment: Lessons Learned on School-Level Implementation,” research shows that college
 students
 who 
had 
participated in
 Dual
 Enrollment
 when in high school 
had 
higher
 persistence
 and
 retention, 
grade
 point
 average
 (GPA), and
 credit
 accumulation than
 students
 who
 did
 not
 participate. 
In
 particular, 
Dual
Enrollment students earned
 15.1 more
 college
 credits 
than
 their 
non‐Dual
Enrollment
 peers three years after
 high
school
 graduation.

Their research has also shown that Dual Enrollment decreases the time to completion of a college degree. Specifically, a national study found that students who earned college credits in Dual Enrollment and similar programs completed their degree in 4.25 years compared to 4.65 years for students with no previous credit. Similarly, another study found that students save 1.2 semesters during their
baccalaureate program because of their participation in Dual Enrollment. Finally, compressing the time to a degree results in significant cost savings.

Colorado Christian University has been partnering with select schools all over the country since 2012 that are implementing Dual Credit courses within their curriculum. In the Los Angeles area, Trinity Classical Academy offers more Dual Credit courses than any other school in their program as its current college prep curriculum made the transition seamless.

“For a fraction of what it costs for students to register for the equivalent class at a college or university, students who take advantage of Trinity’s Dual Credit Program may reduce the overall cost of their college education by $1,000 per course at a public institution and $3,000 at a private one when taking into account the cost of tuition, books and supplies,” said Matt Rummel, dual enrollment representative, Colorado Christian University. “In a recent study of the eighty-one public, private, and Christian colleges, over 90% accepted
CCU dual credits.”

The Master’s College offers Trinity Classical Academy students college credit for those who take Professor Grant Horner’s AP Literature class and meet their admissions requirements. Not only does Professor Horner teach Upper School Humanities at Trinity, he is also the Associate Professor of Renaissance and Reformation Studies at The Master’s College.

 “Through Prof. Grant Horner’s excellent teaching, students at Trinity will get a taste of what it’s like to sit under our world-class faculty—men and women who love the Lord and His Word and who are highly respected in their fields of study,” explained Dr. Lee Duncan, Ed.D. executive vice president, The Master’s College. “We are excited for the opportunity to partner with a likeminded school in our community to equip Christian young people with a biblical foundation before they take the next step in their academic careers.”

Trinity Classical Academy is a coeducational, college preparatory, independent, liberal arts transitional kindergarten through twelfth grade school that was founded in 2001 with 28 students on the classical, Christian educational model. With enrollment over 550 students, Trinity is the fastest growing and one of the largest classical, Christian schools in the country. The mission of Trinity Classical Academy has remained consistent: to offer a challenging education, grounded in the Christian faith and the classical tradition, to produce young men and women of virtue, wisdom, purpose and courage.