When all of the graduates walk across the stage this year most of them will have attended four years of high school, but our early graduates, Rylan Vandiver, Grace Wimberley, and Haylie Robson will have only attended three. The early graduation program allows students to graduate high school early with a distinguished level of achievement by demonstrating early readiness for college.
Graduating early requires you to take more classes than other students. This can include online classes and on campus.
“Before I could graduate early, I had to take some classes online to make up for the ones I would be missing,” Vandiver said. “I also took health and speech online the summer after freshman year to finish off the credits.”
Students that graduate early usually do it to get a head start on college. Certain people’s career paths require more classes and time than others so it’s not a bad idea to start early.
“I knew that either route I was going to take, medical or law, I would have to go to more school after college,” Wimberley said. “I wanted to shorten that time.”
Graduating early also comes with struggles. It can be stressful, time consuming, and since there is typically never that many people doing it, you don’t get as much help from others compared to an average high school student.
[One of the challenges I had to go through was] “maintaining all A’s with all classes,” Robson said. “As well as having to pass the TSI to get college ready.”
Starting college early is a very exciting opportunity and these students are looking forward to the journey they have ahead of them.
“I’m looking forward to the different experiences that will come along,” Vandiver said. “As well as all the new people I’ll meet and the things I’ll try.”
