By the time Stephanie Mead graduates from Jefferson Forest High School next school year, she plans to have an associate’s degree and be halfway finished with higher learning.
The junior takes the majority of her classes at Central Virginia Community College through a dual enrollment program that involves a partnership between CVCC and Bedford County Public Schools.
Participation from her school is limited, she said, and she was put on a waiting list.
When someone else dropped out last semester she was able to fill in. She was more than happy to do so to help make college more affordable, she said.
“I wanted to get a head start on my college career,” said Mead, 16. “My mom definitely urged me to try harder for it because it would help us financially.”
The learning atmosphere is slightly more challenging, Mead said. She spends five out of her six classes on CVCC’s satellite campus in Bedford.
“I think it prepares you since they are real college professors and courses,” said Mead. “They’re tough (professors) but they expect more from you and expect you to know how to act.”
Her favorite subject is health, she said, because she likes the discussions it generates.
Aside from class, she does secretarial work for the Mendez Academy of Music in Lynchburg is involved in the Spanish Honors Society at JF.
She hasn’t yet picked out a college to attend and said she still likes to enjoy her high school life despite spending so much time on a college campus.
“I still go to the games and participate in (JF) activities,” she said, “and I’m with high school students all day.”
Bedford County Public Schools started the Early College Program in the fall of the 2007-2008 school year.
“For a couple of thousand dollars, kids will have their first couple of years of college behind them,” Superintendent James Blevins said in a 2007 interview with The News & Advance. “It hasn’t been tried anyplace else, so it’s a totally new experience.”
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