Around New England

UMass Amherst Launches Early College Program

September 20, 2024

The University of Massachusetts Amherst has launched an early college pilot program aimed at allowing high school students to earn college credits at no cost.

Five high schools in western Massachusetts are set to participate, allowing students to experience college-level work while receiving academic support. The program specifically targets economically disadvantaged, underrepresented, and first-generation students to encourage higher enrollment in post-secondary education.

UMass Amherst is the latest addition to the broader UMass system initiative to make higher education more affordable through early college programs. These programs let high school students earn free, transferable college credits, with some students in Massachusetts earning up to two years’ worth of credits before graduating. 

“Early college is one of the most promising initiatives we have to eliminate barriers to college for thousands of students,” UMass President Marty Meehan said in a press release from the UMass system. “Through our early college programs, we are giving students the experience and confidence they need to thrive in college and provide them with a financial head-start with the credits they earn at no cost to them. Across our campuses, we are working hard to expand opportunity and create innovative pathways so more Massachusetts students can access a world-class UMass education.”

The program partners UMass Amherst with five high schools:  Easthampton High School, Granby High School, Hopkins Academy in Hadley, The Springfield Renaissance School, and Libertas Academy in Springfield.

Previously in Massachusetts, only four of the more than 190 rural secondary schools already offered early college programs.

“Increasing access opportunities is fundamental to our mission as a land-grant university,” UMass Amherst Chancellor Javier Reyes said in the written statement. “Early college provides a unique pathway for underrepresented and economically disadvantaged students from our surrounding communities to see themselves at UMass and begin to realize the transformative power of higher education in building a brighter future.”

This initiative builds on UMass Amherst’s pilot early college program, the Commonwealth Collegiate Academy, which launched in the fall of 2022. That initial program involved 170 students across seven high schools. Now, with UMass Amherst’s participation, more than 1,125 students from 22 high schools are enrolled in early college programs across all four UMass campuses.

UMass early college programs offer financial benefits to students, the press release says. In the spring 2024 semester alone, high school students earned 2,307 credits, representing about $1 million in tuition savings. 

Governor Maura Healey’s administration allocated more than $30 million for early college programs in the state’s fiscal year 2025 budget (which began July 1, 2024), as a part of her administration’s efforts to increase college enrollment.  Supporters say these initiatives are crucial for helping students get a head start in college and reduce the time and money required to complete a degree.

“Early college is a game-changer for students across Massachusetts who face barriers to college completion because it prepares students to be successful, makes college less expensive, and reduces the time it takes to earn a degree,” Erika Giampietro, executive director of the Massachusetts Alliance for Early College, said in the press release. “We applaud the UMass system for helping to make that a possibility.”

Meehan has pledged to triple early college enrollment at UMass to reach more than 2,000 students in the next five years, focusing on expansion into rural communities and Gateway Cities.

New to NewBostonPost? Conservative media is hard to find in Massachusetts. But you’ve found it. Now dip your toe in the water for two bucks — $2 for two months. And join the real revolution.