ELEVATE Dual Enrollment Program Expands To 12 Hours For Tuscaloosa City Schools

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Tuscaloosa City Schools on Thursday announced that students will now be able to enroll in up to 12 hours of dual enrollment courses at The University of Alabama, Stillman College or Shelton State Community College at no cost, due to the expansion of the city’s ELEVATE scholarship program.

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Students previously were able to receive up to nine hours paid for by the city through ELEVATE funds.

“Dual enrollment is having a real, positive impact in opening up the doors of higher education and removing the barriers of cost for our students,” TCS Superintendent Mike Daria said. “We have students who did not think they were college material, who are excelling in dual enrollment and are the first generation in their families to attend college. That is made possible by ELEVATE, and we thank the city of Tuscaloosa for their support in this important program.”

Created in early 2020, the ELEVATE scholarship has sine expanded to include 10th, 11th and 12th graders in the city school system, with the program also covering books and fees.

TCS says classes can be offered either virtually or in person, and summer dual enrollment courses are also an option.

The ELEVATE Dual Enrollment Scholarship over its first three years reportedly supported 795 students in earning a total of 3,470 college credit hours for students in the 2021, 2022, and 2023 graduation cohorts, according to the City of Tuscaloosa. The city also said 53.4% of those students were first-time dual enrollment students, while roughly 611 TCS students are currently participating in the ELEVATE Dual Enrollment Scholarship program.

“When we passed Elevate Tuscaloosa, one of the pledges we made to this community was to help our young people get a head start on their college- or career-readiness, without their family having to sacrifice other pieces of their life,” Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox said. “Increasing the available dual enrollment credits paid for by ELEVATE Tuscaloosa from 9 to 12 hours per student is another major step in accomplishing that goal. I want to thank the leadership of the Tuscaloosa City Schools and our higher education community for the success that this partnership has created, and also for the lasting impact that this program has and will have on our community for future generations.”

As part of the big announcement on Thursday, Shelton State Community College also said it would continue its matching program, which will match any hours that a TCS student receives through ELEVATE at Shelton State.

“That is up to 24 hours at no cost, just by being a student in the Tuscaloosa City Schools,” Daria said. “This is access at its best. When we give our students access, we give them opportunity. We could not be more excited to partner with the city of Tuscaloosa and Shelton State to do this work.”

Harmony King, a student at Paul W. Bryant High School, spoke to the benefits of the ELEVATE dual enrollment program after taking 33 hours of classes to gain credits at both Stillman College and Shelton State.

This has reportedly helped her complete a year of college before she graduates high school.

King plans to study criminal justice and hopes to become a prosecutor.

“I think dual enrollment is a good option, especially if you are going into a field that requires multiple degrees,” King said. “Taking college courses can be stressful, and I’m also an athlete, so I have had to be on a schedule and it’s helped me with my time management skills.”

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