FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Bill Frederick

St. Petersburg College

727-341-3076

Frederick.bill@spcollege.edu

Two area Catholic high schools partner

 with SPC to offer dual enrollment for students

Under the plan, high school juniors and seniors

 will be able to earn college credits

            ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (April 29, 2008) -- St. Petersburg College will partner with two area Roman Catholic high schools, offering dual enrollment opportunities for students who qualify at both schools, it was an announced today.

            The two high schools are Clearwater Central Catholic High School and St. Petersburg Catholic High School, according to Carl M. Kuttler Jr., president of St. Petersburg College.

            Teachers at both high schools have earned credentials as adjunct SPC instructors and are qualified to teach college-level courses to high-achieving high school students.

            “This will allow high school juniors and seniors to earn college credits as they finish up the final two years of their high school curricula,” said Jeff Cesta, director of Early College/Dual Enrollment at St. Petersburg College.

            At St. Petersburg Catholic, students will be able to earn dual enrollment credits in English and Spanish. Those credits will qualify for both their high school and college transcripts, giving them a head start when they enroll in college.

            “We have two teachers who are now going to be adjunct (college) professors, and they will be teaching English Comp 1 and 2,” said Joan Ulrich, assistant principal for academics at St. Petersburg Catholic. “We are very excited about it.”

            Juniors and seniors at St. Petersburg Catholic will be able to remain motivated in their final high school years as they earn college as well as high school credits, she said.

            “They will be able to take a transcript with them when they leave us and, in essence, get a head start on their college studies,” Ulrich said. “Our purpose is to keep them challenged and give them something valid.”

            Janet Long, assistant to the president at Clearwater Central Catholic, said the dual enrollment concept is a great opportunity for students.

            “It prepares them for the next phase of their life and gives parents more bang for the buck because their students can have most of the first two years of college done when they graduate from high school,” she said. “It also allows us to be more competitive.” 

            CCC will offer Biology, Drawing/Painting, Ceramics, Photography and Psychology.

            “It will take us a few years to phase this in as we more of our teachers earn their credentials,” Long said.

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ABOUT ST. PETERSBURG COLLEGE:

St. Petersburg College was founded in 1927 as a two-year institution of higher learning. Known then as St. Petersburg Junior College, it provided high-quality, fully-accredited programs with credits that were fully transferable to four-year institutions. In 2001, the Florida Legislature passed legislation allowing the college to offer four-year degrees. In response, the college dropped the word “junior” from its name and became St. Petersburg College. Today, St. Petersburg College offers programs at learning sites in St. Petersburg, Seminole, Clearwater, Tarpon Springs and elsewhere. It also offers courses and degree programs online.