High School Students Earn College Degrees
Two National Park College (NPC) students earned their high school diplomas and associate
degrees last month. Kayse Graham from Lakeside High School and Bayley Brown from Mountain
Pine High School completed concurrent credit to earn an associate degree while also
attending high school.
Graham learned about the concurrent credit program through her counselor at Lakeside
High School. “I wasn’t fully sure what I was getting myself into when I decided to
do NPC and high school but I knew it would benefit me in the long run,” stated Graham.
Graham said she also worked a job while attending high school and completing her associate
degree this year. Though she has not decided on her major, she plans to attend Henderson
State University.
“I never visited the NPC campus, all of my classes were online, however the school
will always be a big part of my life. I spent a lot of time and effort in my courses
through NPC and I will forever be grateful to have a jump-start on college,” noted
Graham.
Brown learned about concurrent classes at NPC from other students. She said her principal
at the time, Toby Crosby, as well as her College and Career Coach, Tammy Brown also
encouraged her.
“I chose to do both high school and concurrent classes through National Park College
because I originally wanted to get a few of my basic classes out of the way. I was
later told that I could receive my Associate of Arts degree at the same time I graduated
high school, which meant I would have two years of college out of the way and completely
paid for. I set a goal for myself in the ninth grade to accomplish that and I was
determined to do so,” stated Brown.
“If students are given the opportunity to take just a few concurrent credit classes,
I 100% encourage them to do so. It will not only save you money in the long run, but
also give you a taste as to what college is like so you won't be going in blind. It
can be a lot to balance, but it is incredibly worth it. I would not change anything
about my decision and am incredibly excited and proud I have accomplished the goal
I set for myself in the ninth,” Brown added.
