Running Start guiding hundreds through school

By Chris Johnson

REPORTER

Statistics could indicate how well prepared a student is for pursuing dreams of service, education, or apprenticeship, after graduation.

In some cases, a good focus has to be set as students try to get a head start on life after high school.

At Belvidere and Belvidere North High Schools, the numbers seem to indicate there are a lot of students who are looking to do more as they pursue an Associate’s Degree and a high school diploma during their final years in high school.

With information collected through the school district’s internet portal, it was learned that 150 student-members of Belvidere North’s available student-population is taking a shot at the Running Start Program. Belvidere North’s entire student-membership is listed at 1,441 with the IHSA.

The student-participants attend class at area colleges such as Rock Valley College. The cost of the program to parents is limited.

Involvement in the Running Start Program and acceptance includes a tuition paid for by the home school district. It is an incentive to attend the first two years of college at a limited expense. Book fees and transportation have to be covered, but the student isn’t paying for their freshman and sophomore years of college, as the plan indicates.

The benefits do exist for those students who qualify.

However, there are limits as to who can be accepted. Semester grade totals and testing results will influence the opportunities. The reality will set in and those students who wish to advance through the program will have to determine the amount of focus they are willing to apply. The grades have to be on the “above-average” side, typically, for acceptance into the program.

As it is designed, the students have to make sure they are getting good grades early in their high school careers, if they want to get their shot to pursue both their diploma and Associates’ Degree in the Running Start Program.

Information on the Running Start Program can be found through the State Board of Education’s website as well as through the Belvidere School District’s internet portal.