AMERICUS, Ga. — Early College is still a major controversy in progress. Since its inception at the beginning of the 2006-2007 school term, Early College has been a touchy issue among members of the Sumter County Board of Education (BOE). The alternative program for at-risk students — determined by certain factors — has been a roller coaster ride that surrounds issues of enrollment, curriculum, finance and personnel. But when school begins next semester in January, the BOE will have a final vote on the future of the school.

The Early College program began as a collaborative, innovative approach to learning between Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) and Sumter County Schools in an effort to give teenagers a fresh chance at educational success. The program is housed at GSW in the School of Education and gives at-risk youth the opportunity to graduate high school and receive college credit in a hands-on learning environment.

Over the past year and a half, the program has undergone an obstacle course in which Board members have expressed their views and opinions on the pros and cons of the program — specifically in terms of the program being designated as a charter school. In December 2006, the idea was brought to the Board by Gale Chance, dean of Early College. According to Chance in a previous story in the Times-Recorder, designating the program as a charter school would allow flexibility in the students served, the programs offered and also allow additional funding to be accepted from innovative sources.

“These resources will help catch those students before they become high school drop-outs,” she said. “In order for Early College to be autonomous, it must be recognized as an independent entity.”

The story also says that organizers of Early College believe it could achieve greater success were it granted a charter to operate as a separate school in the Sumter County school district, rather than just being a program within the district.

But in the December 2006 BOE meeting, the vote to take up the program as a charter did not pass: it was a 4-4 split with Michael Busman, Doug Goodin, Donna Minich and Mark Waddell supporting the charter (saw the program as a benefit because it would help decrease the drop-out rate) and Alice Green, Edith Ann Green, Carolyn Whitehead and Farrell Wilson, opposing the charter (their main concern was how the program would affect the system as a whole). Because Karen Gatewood was not present at that meeting, the charter proposal did not pass and Chance informed the Board that the program would proceed with its state application and expected to receive a charter.

Now, a year later, there are still questions about the logistics of the Early College program. Members of the finance, curriculum and personnel committees of the BOE were asked to raise any concerns about the program so the issues could be looked at in-depth for the decision-making of the future of the program. Currently, 100 students are enrolled in the program. But according to Chance, they are playing things by ear.

“We are in operation for the remainder of the school year, but are not certain about the status for next school term,” she said.

For Chance, Early College is a much needed program and it is doing well. The program has met with acclaim from parents and students and last school term, exceeded both local and state averages for the Georgia End of Course Test.

“We have had several success stories from our students. We hope that we will be able to continue next year and years to come,” said Chance.

Dennis McMahon, Ph.D., superintendent of Sumter County Schools, agrees that Early College is a good program.

“It’s a very good program. Early College is getting the needs met of at-risk students by placing them outside of a regular classroom setting,” he said.

According to McMahon, at the BOE’s meeting Monday, it was decided that the Board would be ready to make a decision at the January meeting.

“Board members have been split on this issue in the past, and there has been no vote about the current existence of the program,” he said.



Raven Paye writes for the Americus (Ga.) Times-Recorder.