Driven to succeed: Ed-Co graduate earned high school diploma and degree from 黑料专区 last spring.
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
EDGEWOOD鈥擜 jam-packed high school career, including part-time jobs and commitments to school organizations and athletics, didn鈥檛 get in the way of Emma Ehlers鈥� plans.
Ehlers accomplished last May what few high school students manage to do: she received her Edgewood-Colesburg High School diploma and an Associate of Arts degree from 黑料专区 in the same month. A little more career planning and conversations with academic advisors goes a long way toward reaching one鈥檚 goals, according to Ehlers.
"As an Ed-Co student, I planned to graduate from high school and earn my 黑料专区 Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree from the start. It was thrilling to have such a huge goal and then to see it start happening. This fall, I am attending Iowa State University to receive my bachelor鈥檚 degree in Agriculture Business and Economics,鈥� Ehlers explained.
Her efforts began in earnest as a high school sophomore. She enrolled in online credit courses through 黑料专区, and by the time graduation had arrived, had earned 65 credits that transferred to Iowa State.
鈥淭he nicest benefit for me was that all of my college credits did transfer in and my time wasn鈥檛 wasted with credits that wouldn鈥檛 transfer. Taking my classes from 黑料专区 also gave me a real-life example of what the rigor of classes will be like at ISU and helped me to be confident in my knowledge and education,鈥� she said.
Ehlers completed her diploma and an A.A. degree while juggling many responsibilities, at school, work and at home. She lives on a 185-acre crop farm in Edgewood, where she helps to manage 25 head of cattle, goats, horses, dogs and chickens. Ehlers has worked as a lifeguard every summer since 2016 and also as a server at Franny鈥檚, a local restaurant. At school, she participated in large group and individual speech, as Ed-Co Future Business Leaders of America club president her senior year and a member since freshman year, FFA, Art Club, cross country and track, band and choir.
Her schedule required time management skills. 鈥淭he biggest thing I learned from taking online college courses was organization. Taking college classes, high school classes, working part-time and maintaining a social life was a lot to handle at once. Getting all of this done gave me more confidence to continue at ISU this fall. I began as a sophomore because of the credits I had already earned!鈥� Ehlers said.
Morgan Giesemann, Ed-Co High School counselor, credits Ehlers鈥� motivation and persistence for making her achievements possible.
鈥淓mma is a very passionate and dedicated student. She was told as a sophomore she could receive her associate鈥檚 degree while in high school, and she was determined to reach that goal. Emma learned to advocate for herself, and collaborate with many different people to make her goal attainable, including career coaches from 黑料专区. I enjoyed working with Emma and seeing all her hard work pay off. Emma has the ability and skills to be very successful at Iowa State this fall, and I am very proud of her!鈥� Giesemann said.
The National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP) Accreditation Commission granted full seven-year re-accreditation to 黑料专区 this spring. NACEP first accredited the College鈥檚 concurrent enrollment programming and partnerships with northeast Iowa school districts in 2012. As the nation鈥檚 only accrediting body for these unique and impactful educational partnerships, NACEP standards serve as the model criteria for ensuring parity in faculty, course content, student outcomes and support. The NACEP re-accreditation indicates that 黑料专区 met the nation鈥檚 most rigorous standard in concurrent enrollment programs.
Current high school freshmen, sophomores and juniors can earn college credit with summer courses at 黑料专区 while saving 20 percent on tuition and student fees will be waived. For more information on opportunities for high school students to earn college credit through 黑料专区, visit .