Preparing High School Students for College - ERIC - U.S. ...

processed by the THECB to identify curriculum and assessment discrepanciesand misalignments between the institutions and to develop policies and plansto alleviate these issues.K-16 Bridge ProgramOperated by: San Jacinto College (SJC)Date of visit: November 17, 2010Partner institutions: Lewis Center for Educational Research; Galena Park,Deer Park, Channelview, La Porte, Pasadena, and Sheldon IndependentSchool DistrictsLocation: Participating high schoolsProgram type: College readiness lessonsParticipants: The program is open to all students at participating schools;approximately 100 students participated during the 2009–10 school year.Over 1,100 students are currently enrolled.Length/duration: The program includes short lessons and assignmentsthroughout the school year. The program is envisioned to run fromkindergarten through senior year of high school but was first piloted duringthe 2009–10 school year for students in grades 9–12.Funding: San Jacinto College District funds the program. The partner K-12school districts provide the bulk of the human resources; lessons are taughtduring the school day by K-12 teachers.Goals and components: The overarching mission of the K-16 Bridgeprogram is to foster a college-going culture beginning in kindergarten andcontinuing through high school. Specifically, the program works to ensurethat every high school senior attending a partner school will have completed acollege application, a FAFSA, and any required testing needed to be acceptedinto a college, a technical program, or the military before graduating highschool. The program includes six to eight classroom lessons per semester tobe taught by elementary and high school teachers during the regular schoolday. These lessons are supplemented by self-learning assignments thatstudents access on the My Mentor website. Students can store their work to44