𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗦𝗧𝗨𝗗𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗘 𝗔𝗟𝗘𝗥𝗧 𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗦 𝗔𝗩𝗔𝗜𝗟𝗔𝗕𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗦𝗘 𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗛𝗜𝗚𝗛 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗟 𝗜𝗡 𝗕𝗜𝗦𝗗

 

Brownsville, a city 94.6% Hispanic or Latino by U.S. Census Bureau statistics, treasures its young.

It's not just quinceañeras for 15 year old girls, but, more importantly, the emphasis on education to escape or prevent poverty.

The proliferation of early college high schools, p-tech and dual enrollment campuses in our city affirms that.

With two grandsons in BISD, one entering high school next year, I've tried to become familiar with the nuances of the three variations, the available options and the expected result from each.

Of course, there is no "one size fits all" for any student, but I've learned the importance of parents and students being pro-active.

A printout distributed by BISD, for example, shades the expectations for each category by saying that all students enrolled in Early College High School will graduate with an associate degree, while Dual Enrollment students may earn up to an associate degree.

P-Tech students, while also given the prospect of earning an associate degree, will be told that it's more likely they'll receive an "industry-based certificate."(Perhaps, you recall some stories we ran a couple months ago showing that those who received a welding certificate from TSC's vocational arm had difficulty landing a job with that document alone.)

To illustrate the need for parents and students to be on their toes so to speak, let's use the example of a student who wants to take the IT course Cyber Security, a difficult course, but one that's categorized as P-Tech. 

Since Cyber Security is offered in P-Tech, the student may not automatically be assigned to the same core classes as students in the ECHS cohort, but parents and students can insist on it if the student qualifies academically.

Cyber Security or any other technical course, shouldn't be viewed as simply an option for the non-college bound.  Why assume that simply because a student is taking a P-Tech course, they're not college material?

AVID, the acronym for Advancement via Individual Determination is simply a support program for college-bound students, especially the first in their respective families.

For some reason, BISD offers AVID for ECHS and P-Tech students, but not for Dual Enrollment students.

Again, both parents and students must be pro-active, alert to the choices available, making the correct decision for and with the student.