FBCS celebrates dual credit, honors and certificate students

The Forrest Bird Charter School recognized its Honors and dual credit students at its Honors Luncheon Wednesday.

The students included Grant Bansemer, Alissa Colesgrove, Tayah Goodwin, Lucy Lang, Tracy Mullinax, Dylan Solly, Mark Warren and Madeline Wuthrich.

Of those students, Bansemer, Goodwin, Solly and Alara Langley will receive an associate’s degree from North Idaho College through the dual enrollment program.

Another student, Trevor Brackett, will receive a plumbing certificate from NIC.

The dual credit program is supported by the state’s Idaho Advanced Opportunities, said Mitzi Vesecky, academic advisor at FBCS. Students are given up to $4,125 toward furthering education including professional certifications and dual credit.

“Idaho hasn't had the greatest go on rate. It’s actually lower in the nation than many other states,” Vesecky said. “So they had many years ago, they had developed this program that's been so successful. [The funding is] always increasing every year.”

Every year, the school has around three to four students who graduate high school and earn their associate’s degree through the dual credit program, she said. The school also has numerous students who begin earning college credits in high school and graduate with an associate’s degree a year or so after high school graduation.

Bansemer, who earned his associate’s degree and began NIC classes his freshman year, said he decided to enroll in dual credit because he was doing well in his classes and ready for a bigger challenge.

The experience meant most of his classes were online, and he was rarely at the school, Bansemer said.

The program isn’t for everyone, Vesecky said. It takes away the traditional high school experience, which is important for some students and less so for others. However, in many cases such as Bansemer’s it also allowed him to pursue his career goals faster.

Bansemer previously volunteered with the Sam Owens Fire Department, and worked with the Idaho Department of Lands full time in the summer of 2020. He also recently completed his EMT training.

The school doesn’t always wait for students to approach them about dual enrollment, Vesecky said. Sometimes. a teacher might suggest it as an option for teenagers who are quiet, but motivated as students. In other cases, the program opens doors for students who might not otherwise be able to afford college degrees.

Goodwin, another soon-to-be graduate of NIC, said she started the dual enrollment program after a teacher reached out to her.

“I submitted an essay and she was reading over it, and she put it down, and she’s like, ‘Have you ever thought of taking [English 101 [through NIC]?” she said. “She was like, ‘Well, you should go try it out.’”

Although some students might find the thought of college classes intimidating, Goodwin said she thinks any student who puts their mind to it can do dual enrollment if they want to.

“It's not so much the difficulty, but whether or not they have a willingness to try. I'm pretty sure that everyone here could actually do it,” she said.