Atlantic Cape Early College Program Brings Pleasantville High School Students to Campus to Earn Chemistry Lab Credits

MAYS LANDING — Atlantic Cape Community College is partnering with Pleasantville High School this Spring semester on an Early College Program that is giving 30 high school juniors the opportunity to earn college credit towards an associate’s degree by taking a Chemistry lab at the college’s Mays Landing campus.

The cohort of 30 students meet once a week in the STEM building where they fulfill the lab portion of their chemistry class under the guidance of Atlantic Cape Environmental Science Assistant Professors Dr. Francis Toriello and Richard Perello. The lecture portion of the class is conducted concurrently at Pleasantville High School itself.

“The benefits of this program are endless,” said Atlantic Cape Senior Manager of Early College Programs Kayla Scannell. “Students develop the skills needed to excel in a collegiate environment, they save money and lessen the time it takes to earn a college degree, and they are actively expanding the educational and career opportunities available to them beyond high school.”

Begun in June 2018, the goal of the partnership between Atlantic Cape and Pleasantville High School is to give students an experience of a college’s culture and workload, at no cost to the students and their families, while obtaining college credits at the same time they are completing their high school diploma. This is the second time, since the program’s inception five years ago, that Atlantic Cape has welcomed Pleasantville’s high school students to the Mays Landing campus for this course.

“It is important to Introduce students to college learning and to the college facilities to show them some of the options that they have after high school,” said Perello, an Atlantic Cape Environmental Science Assistant Professor. “Earning credits and gaining some college experience furthers their journey through high school and allows them to interact with their peers in a college setting while helping them to grow as individuals.”

Perello added that his Chemistry cohort is achieving exceptionally well as they are handing in their assignments promptly and are committed and responsible with their lab work and experiments.

The Early College High School initiative is a national program created by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in 2002 that allows students to earn up to a maximum of 60 credits towards an associate’s degree while in high school. This may lead to transitioning to a four-year college/university or directly into the workforce of their choosing.

Learn more at atlanticcape.edu/earlycollegeprogram.

About Atlantic Cape Community College

Atlantic Cape is a comprehensive two-year community college serving the residents of Atlantic and Cape May counties. The college offers over 40 career, transfer and workforce development programs to more than 8,000 students annually at three campuses in New Jersey: Atlantic City, Cape May Court House and Mays Landing.