The transition from low-ranking institution to being named one of the top high schools in the country by U.S. News & World Report doesn’t happen overnight. The magazine’s accolades come after years of redefining the approach, the curriculum and the goals that created the Carver Early College High School in southeast Atlanta.
“Historically, the Carver campus was a low-performing school,” said Melinda Landsman, the school’s instructional coach and dual enrollment coordinator. “But there was a strong initiative to increase academic achievement.”
In 2005, the Early College concept was implemented with a key focus: support students who are traditionally unrepresented on college campuses.
“The idea is, if they’re exposed to college early, they’re more likely to go to college,” said Landsman. “A lot of our students are first-generation college goers, and many, in fact, are first-generation high school graduates.”
The Early College program helps to level the playing field for those first-generation teens, Landsman added. “It’s all focused on academics and supporting and pushing them to be successful.”
Under the program, Carver’s first cohort headed to Georgia State University in 2007, after packing major high school courses into two intense years. That same group graduated in 2009, and since then, the school’s graduation rate has hovered at 90 percent. In addition, 85 percent of last year’s 114 seniors went to college. But they had a full schedule of core general education courses first.
“The plan is that by time they get to their junior year here, they’ll be dual-enrolled at Georgia State, our largest partner, or Atlanta Tech or Atlanta Metropolitan,” said Landsman. “Depending on the student and how many college credits they earn, some start as second-semester freshmen or even sophomores.”
That fast-track to college appealed to senior Myles Dunn, who picked Carver specifically for the opportunity it offered to get a jump on his higher education.
“I also wanted a school that would challenge me,” said the 17-year-old. “And it’s really pushed my limits. For the first two years, I took all the major courses, and the workload was vastly different from what I was used to. It was much more rigorous, and I had to learn things faster. But I liked that the school is small, and the adults push us to do well.”
That workload put Dunn on track to take classes at Georgia State, where he’s been for the last two years.
“It’s allowed me to experience what it’s like to be a college student and adapt to that environment, which I think will give me a leg up,” said Dunn, who’s eyeing either the University of Georgia or the University of Pennsylvania as his next step.
Landsman believes the nod from U.S. News came as a combination of Carver’s commitment to focusing on academics and giving students a taste of what college is like.
“I just wish it was something we could bottle and give to everyone,” she said.
The magazine’s Best High School rankings, based on factors such as enrollment, graduation rates, diversity, state tests results and more, are available at usnews.com.
Information about Carver Early College is online at atlantapublicschools.us/carverec.
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Each week we look at programs, projects and successful endeavors at area schools, from pre-K to grad school. To suggest a story, contact H.M. Cauley at hm_cauley@yahoo.com or 770-744-3042.
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