(reprinted from the Rockdale Citizen, July 30, 2015)

High school students have the chance to earn college credits in a new way with recent changes to Move On When Ready.

“In the old days dual enrollment was when a student took some courses in high school and some courses at (college). The Move on When Ready students took all their classes (at a college),” Georgia Perimeter College Newton Campus Move On When Ready coordinator Amanda Boone said. “Now the program has been streamlined … It’s dual credit, so while you’re sitting in the Georgia Perimeter College U.S. history course, you’re at the same time receiving credit for U.S. history in high school.”

The major change in the Move On When Ready program is that as of July 1 all costs for tuition, mandatory fees and books are covered for the student through state appropriations and post-secondary institutions, leaving the students to be responsible only for items labeled as course materials, such as calculators or software packages.

“That’s a huge change. I know it may sound small, but when you know how much textbooks are, that’s a huge deal. I know we’re all starting to move toward more electronic things, but I require textbooks every semester,” said Boone, who is also an English instructor.

The Newton Campus of GPC currently has around 100 Move On When Ready students, but Boone said she hopes to be able to set up information tables at the local high schools as soon as possible once school gets started.

“Rockdale County Public Schools students who qualify are encouraged to register for either an Advanced Placement course at their school or a Dual Enrollment course at Rockdale Career Academy or on a college campus,” RCPS Chief of Strategy and Innovation Cindy Ball said.

The program at GPC is open to all rising high school juniors and seniors, including home school and private school students, who have a minimum of 3.0 GPA in their core classes and have a minimum combined critical score of 970 on the SAT or a composite score of 20 on the ACT. They also require a minimum critical reading score of 480 and a minimum critical math score of 440 on the SAT. The minimum English score on the ACT is 20, with a minimum score of 18 on the math portion.

“The Move On When Ready program provides an excellent opportunity for our students to gain exposure to college courses while completing their high school requirements. We encourage students to take advantage of any opportunity that will better prepare them for life after high school graduation,” Newton County School System Director of Secondary Schools Shannon Buff said.

Any credit hours taken at college under the University System of Georgia will transfer to another state school under the transfer agreement guarantees between many colleges in the USG. However, credit transfers for any student going out of state or to schools that are not part of the USG will be accepted at the discretion of the university.

For more information, visit the GPC website at www.gpc.edu.

“Simply apply to the college and classify as a dual enrollment student,” Boone said. “Then apply to the college just like anyone else. It’s not technically too late because we have a rolling acceptance date.”