Bergen Community College: High Schoolers Get A Head Start On College

Press release from Bergen Community College:

November 25, 2024

Applied Technology High School students (left to right) Elizabeth Mazur, Briella Biggins and Skylar Melis have the opportunity to enroll in college-level classes and pursue an associate degree from Bergen Community College.

“Ambitious high school students and their families remain incredibly excited about the opportunity to earn college credits – or a full associate degree,” he said. “The student has an opportunity to grow as a learner through advanced coursework and potentially enter college with a significant number of credits already completed. Of course, this saves both time and money for the student. The incredible growth of our high school partnership programs reflects our community’s support of the competitive advantage we have developed for local students.”

Bergen has become a regional leader in establishing college-high school partnerships, creating a portfolio of offerings that serve students regardless of their individual goals. Early college programs, like Bergen’s arrangement with ATHS, offer high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to enroll in classes at the College where they can attend in-person or online. Meanwhile, the dual enrollment program allows students to earn college credits at their home high school, taught by a Bergen-approved instructor. Rounding out the offerings, Bergen also offers a non-degree option for juniors and seniors and a grant-funded preparation program for seniors planning to articulate into the College. Collectively, 2,962 students from 53 high schools participated in one of the four programs last year. Growth has continued unabated since the College first launched the high school partnership initiative more than a decade ago, according to Bergen Director of College Readiness and Early College Programs Laura Madera.

“We’re opening doors of opportunity for students that might otherwise remain closed for years,” she said. “This good work is only possible through a robust collaboration with our partners: superintendents, principals, guidance supervisors, department deans and professors. We are grateful to have such dedicated partners by our side.”

Those partners include the Bergen County Technical Schools district, which operates ATHS. The ATHS model remains especially unique because of its position on Bergen’s campus, giving students a true, on-campus collegiate experience according to ATHS Principal Dennis Montone.

Based in Paramus, Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu), a public two-year coeducational college, enrolls more than 13,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields. More students graduate from Bergen than any other community college in the state.

This press release was produced by Bergen Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.