On Saturday, May 6, the Sedona-Oak Creek School District will graduate its inaugural early college cohort, a group of seven students who are finishing high school with a completed associate’s degree.

The district will also be expanding its college credit options for students starting next school year. 

“Four years ago, we decided to partner with Yavapai College for this program in the early summer, which doesn’t give you a whole lot of time to prepare. I wanted to get it started right away, because every year you delay, you’re hurting kids,” SOCSD Superintendent Dennis Dearden said. “So now it’s very exciting to see these graduates walk across the stage with a two-year associate’s degree a couple of days before they walk across our stage with their high school diploma.” SOCSD’s high school graduation will take place on Wednesday, May 24.

The program enables students to complete the graduation requirements for their high school diplomas and associate’s degrees simultaneously. They can complete the necessary courses online during their freshman, sophomore and junior years.

“We give students one to two blocks to meet on campus,” school counselor Deanna Hernandez said. “So I’m able to talk with them and they’re also able to really feel that connection with their particular group as they go through the program.”

As early college students, they also have access to the same resources as other Yavapai College students, meaning they can go to the Clarkdale or Prescott campuses for tutoring or to use the writing center, which provides them with extra support during an intense program.

“We want them to be successful,” Hernandez said. “Their typical day is taking their high school classes and then getting at least one block of their day here on our campus to work on their schoolwork.” 

Originally, the program’s intent was for the senior year to have all in- person classes at Yavapai College so that students could get a sense of the atmosphere of a college campus and

build face-to-face relationships with their professors, easing their transition to full-time college work, Hernandez said.

“COVID kind of stopped all that because a lot of colleges then developed their online program, a lot of teachers want to work remotely,” Hernandez said. “So that has really limited the Clarkdale campus and what they offer in person. But they have worked really hard to implement for next year a number of courses that our early college students need in person. So we are slowly going back to having some in-person courses.”

The enrollment process typically starts with Hernandez making a presentation in the fall to interested families and students, which is followed by a round of interviews.

“Then they have to interview with me,” Dearden said. “Because I want them to look me right in the eye and say, ‘I’m committed to do this.’”

Although the school district pays for their education, students have to sign a contract committing to reimburse the district if they drop out of or fail the program, which costs approximately $4,000 per student.

“We want to avoid students getting in just testing the waters,” Dearden said. “What we don’t want is to go through a year of us paying and have the student say, ‘No, I don’t want to do this anymore.’ And then we’re still on the limb to pay that. We want them to have some skin in the game and a commitment.”

Requiring students to have a strong commitment has helped program retention and is part of the reason the district has limited the program to 15 participants for each cohort. The first class started with eight students.

Motivation is a common denominator among all of the students in the program because a majority of this year’s graduates are also athletes, Hernandez said.

“They’re involved in other school activities and about six students are doing at least two sports,” Dearden said. “It’s impressive that they’ll graduate from high school, compete in athletics and get an associate’s degree.”

Dearden believes SOCSD is the only district in Verde Valley that offers a full two-year associate’s degree and is excited that next year the district will offer a one-year college option that will provide credits toward the Arizona general education curriculum, which will be transferable to any in-state university.

“After the success of this first cohort, Sedona Red Rock High School has expanded the program,” Yavapai College spokesperson Tyler Rumsey said. “In addition to the associate of arts pathway, students can now participate in an AGEC pathway option that starts their freshman, sophomore or junior year. This will be a great new opportunity for students to earn a college credential.”

The district is partnering with Yavapai College for that program as well. Dearden said that he secured donations from two different private donors to cover the total cost of $20,000, as other-wise students would have had to pay for the AGEC program themselves, although the program also requires students to repay the cost if they drop out or fail.

“A major reason I donated to support this program is to inspire kids to go to college who might not ever think to go,” donor Lew Hoyt said. “My wife and I have no kids of our own, have survived cancer and saw this as a great opportunity to give back because I love the kids.”

Dearden also promoted the district’s increased surveillance measures.

“We have a new system called School Paths; when visitors check in I immediately get a picture of the person and why they’re here,” Dearden said. “We have a program called Anonymous Alerts where every kid has an app that they can report anything anonymously if they want to a counselor, administrator [or other staff].”

The district has further scheduled an active shooter training day with the Sedona Police Department for April 28.