Jill Savely, principal of Golden Triangle Early College High School, says the new school’s students are coming from a variety of economic backgrounds and their past academic performances vary.
Savely spoke to the Columbus Exchange Club about the school during the club’s weekly meeting on Thursday.
The school — which will open in the fall on the East Mississippi Community College campus in Mayhew — has accepted an incoming freshman class of over 60 students from Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay and Noxubee Counties. The students will be able to earn college credits while in high school.
“(GTECHS) has absolutely been one of the most exciting and fun things that I have ever done in education,” Savely said.
She told club members the school will serve students who are capable of doing work required by the school’s curriculum, which includes college level courses, but who, for various reasons, may have a more difficult time succeeding in a traditional high school environment.
The faculty will include Savely, three teachers and a guidance counselor. After the meeting, Savely told The Dispatch the number of faculty will likely double for the 2016-2017 school year, when another freshman class joins the student body.
Though the curriculum will include many of the same studies as other public high schools, Savely indicated students will take college level courses their freshmen year.
“When they start in August, they’re going to be college students,” she said.
The students will take math, history, Biology I and an English class their first semester, along with a College Studies Skills class Savely hopes will help ease them into college level courses. Their second semester, they will take a dual credit health class. College courses for freshmen and sophomores will be taught by college professors who come to the Early High School’s classrooms. Students will not go to classrooms on the wider EMCC campus until their junior and senior years, unless they are part of a supervised group.
The school will prepare students for a variety of post-graduation options, including the possibility of career technical school. Successful students, Savely said, will graduate with a high school diploma and an associate’s degree, or at least a large number of transferable college credits.
However, Savely added that the school will work with students to find a career path best for them, either continuing their education at a four-year college or going straight into the workforce with career and vocational training.
She requested that club members reach out to the faculty if their jobs have job shadowing opportunities for high school students. She added that the school wants to encourage good citizenship among its students by implementing community service projects and asked the community to help the students find service opportunities.
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