Effective partnership between K-12 districts or high schools and community colleges is at the heart of high-quality, equitable dual enrollment that truly works for students and benefits our communities. But building a strong partnership is complicated, involving the intersection of two complex systems—K-12 and postsecondary. This raises questions about unique needs and challenges experienced by K-12 districts and high schools. What’s working for K-12 partners in dual enrollment? What’s not? And what do we need to learn more about so we can expand and scale it?
CLP partnered with Engage R+D to ask these questions of K-12 education leaders and their partners. Based on these conversations, we identified five priority areas and key questions for further inquiry. These are summarized in the new publication, Learning Priorities for Advancing Equitable Dual Enrollment in California.
As a deepened area of inquiry for the Dual Enrollment for Equitable Completion (DE4EC) initiative, CLP and Engage R+D will further explore these topics in the next couple of years and we look forward to sharing findings from that research with the field. The work focused on support for K-12 partners is funded by the Stuart Foundation, which joins the College Futures Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Tipping Point Community in co-funding DE4EC. DE4EC is an initiative to support California community colleges and their K-12 partners in building dual enrollment programs that are centered on equitable access and completion for students underserved by higher education.