- April 18, 2024
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Flagler high school kids may soon be able to have their head in the clouds in class — and get college credit for it.
The Flagler County School Board discussed a potential partnership with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University that would let high school kids take college-level classes in subjects like aviation, aerospace science and engineering before graduating high school.
The dual-enrollment classes would be offered as part of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Aerospace Institute program.
Leo Murphy, Embry-Riddle director of aeronautical science advanced placement programs, told the board that the program offers students a fast-track to careers in the aerospace or engineering industries.
“It is the actual Embry-Riddle course and material taught by Embry-Riddle professors,” he said. The University can also train high school teachers with graduate-level coursework so they can teach the courses themselves, he said.
The challenge of the classes, and the opportunities they offer, can energize bright but underachieveing students to do well in science and math, he said. There is no minimum grade point average required for students to enroll.
One former student, he said, was flunking out of high school but got into an Embry-Riddle program, got A’s in it, and is now pursuing a master’s degree.
The program can also help parents by cutting back on the amount of college tuition they’ll have to pay later, he said. Kids in the program, he said, could knock out about $40,000 worth of undergraduate Embry-Riddle classes before leaving high school.
School Board Chairman Andy Dance called the program’s potential exciting, especially as the timing coincides with planned expansion at the Flagler County Airport.
Sue Dickinson thought it could be a good opportunity. One of her cousin’s sons went there, she said, and when he arrived, he’d never been in a plane.
“They interviewed him, took him up, and when he was back down, he said that was what he wanted to do,” she said. “They had him flying in two weeks. They don’t waste time.”
