Collin College awarded more than 2,000 degrees and certificates to students in the Class of 2021 — but several students who attended the college’s graduation were still days away from walking across their high school graduation stages.
Thanks to the collegiate academy model and partnerships between Collin College and area school districts including The Colony, Community, Plano, and Princeton, more than 60 dual credit students earned associate degrees in addition to their high school degrees this year.
The collegiate academy model allows high school students to integrate dual credit classes into their schedules and Collin College provides on-site professors and student and enrollment support services. The popular model is rapidly growing throughout the county. The end result of students graduating with their high school and college diplomas at the same time makes all the work worthwhile.
The college’s graduation event celebrated the achievements of these dual credit students as well as the entire Class of 2021. More than 370 students attended the event which was held at the Collin Higher Education Center April 29-May 1. College administrators and staff recognized each student with cheers and applause, and graduating students posed for photographs with their families. In addition, graduates received a special graduation gift from the college as well as mortar boards, tassels, and diploma holders. The district president and Board of Trustees were also featured in special videos on the graduation webpage.
Graduating from Collin College and The Colony High School
One of 41 The Colony High School students to earn an associate degree, Jasmin Hernandez plans to attend Texas Woman’s University and become a nurse practitioner.
“It was crazy at first to take regular high school classes and dual credit classes,” said Jasmin, who earned an Associate of Science degree from the college. “It was two different experiences. I had a lot more freedom in the college classes. I believe anything that is worth doing requires work. Anyone can get two degrees at one time if they are willing to put the effort in.”
Jasmin said she enjoyed being able to get a photo with her family at the graduation celebration. Her mother, Alisa, said Jasmin’s younger sister, Natalie, will be following in her sister’s footsteps and also plans to earn her Collin College associate degree while she is in high school.
“This is a good program,” Alisa said. “The low cost was great. The instructors came to the high school, which was a plus, and Jasmin is ready for the university.”
Jasmin’s father, Florencio, said he would recommend the program to others.
“This program is great for students who choose a career that is going to take longer,” he said. “They already have 60 college credits when they graduate from high school.”
Like Jasmin, Jeriel Varughese earned an Associate of Science degree from the college and also graduated from The Colony High School. Jeriel received a scholarship to attend the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). He plans to become a nurse anesthetist.
“I wanted to get as far ahead as I could to start on the right path,” Jeriel said. “The professors were really nice and made the units easy to understand.”
Jeriel’s mother, Jiji, said the program helped her son to become more organized.
“This is an amazing program, and he did it,” she said. “He earned his high school degree and associate degree, and he was accepted at UTA. The program prepared him very well for the degree. Now he has a knowledge base of biology and psychology.”
Graduating from Collin College and Community ISD
Community High School student Luke Wilson was one of 11 Community ISD students to earn a Collin College degree this year. He plans to attend Texas A&M University to study biochemistry and genetics, and his ultimate goal is to become a physician assistant.
“This is the first year that 11 Community ISD students are graduating with associate degrees,” said Luke, who earned an Associate of Science degree from the college. “It was great to have 10 other people in the program. We became friends and were able to lean on each other and celebrate with each other.”
Luke said he thought this year’s graduation event was more personal than typical graduations. His mother, Erin, described the program as amazing.
“We transferred from another school so he could participate in the program,” Erin said. “He’s always been very driven. I wasn’t surprised that he accomplished this. I would definitely tell other parents to look into it. You are paying for 60 credit hours at a community college tuition rate not a university tuition rate.”
Dominique Hawkins earned an Associate of Arts degree from Collin College and graduated from Community High School. She plans to major in fashion design, and minor in business design and entrepreneurship at the University of North Texas.
“The reason I wanted to earn my associate degree in high school is because I want to go straight into my major and start fashion design classes at the university,” Dominique said. “After that, my goal is to get an internship with Calvin Klein and, from there, get a job and develop my own skills for fashion design.”
Dominique said she would recommend this program to other high school students.
“You get the college experience which is totally different than high school,” she said. “You can graduate with your bachelor’s degree earlier and then go on to earn your master’s degree. It gives you that extra boost to get into the real world sooner.”
Dominique said she enjoyed the graduation event and added that it was well-organized. Her parents Ernestine and Eric also enjoyed the in-person graduation celebration.
“This was an exciting experience and a wonderful surprise that she was able to accomplish both degrees at the same time,” Ernestine said. “Being an ‘A’ student and keeping up with the load, it was very demanding at times. Students have to be self-motivated and determined to stay on top of everything.”
Proud father Eric agreed.
“If you are not disciplined you could fall behind,” he said. “It is good for the students to receive that reassurance from their parents which helps them to stay motivated and get ready for the next level of college.”
Ernestine added that she would recommend families look into this opportunity.
“We just don’t see anything but upsides to this program,” she said. “It can only help.”
Graduating seniors can get even further ahead with Collin College’s Reversing the Slide program which offers spring 2021 high school graduates up to seven hours tuition free this summer. For more information, visit www.collin.edu/express/2021graduates.html.