On Thursday, Jan. 22, the Archie Williams administration introduced a new dual-enrollment Chicano Studies course on the Archie Williams campus. The college-level course, offered by the College of Marin (COM), meets on campus every Thursday from 2:05 p.m. to 5:05 p.m. during Archie Williams’ 4th period. The class provides students with a convenient way to earn college credit and learn about Chicano Communities.
Although other schools in the Tamalpais Union High School District offer dual-enrollment programs, Archie Williams has not offered dual-enrollment courses since before the COVID-19 lockdown. Through this collaboration with COM, AWHS can offer more dual enrollment classes directly to students in the future. Archie Williams counsellor Molly Baker explains the purpose of dual enrollment.
“Dual enrollment is where a college class is taught on a high school campus, and students who are in high school can take the class and receive both high-school and college credit for it. Oftentimes, these [dual-enrollment] courses are classes that we don’t offer here, so it’s a way to broaden [students’] learning beyond what we can teach here,” Baker said.
Intro to Chicano Studies is an Ethnic Studies course that focuses on Chicano communities and experiences in America. COM describes the course as an introduction to “concepts such as race and racism, white supremacy, settler colonialism, historical trauma, and historical victory in the Americas [in relation to Chicano communities].”
All Archie Williams students can take college courses at COM. Many students choose not to take these courses due to transportation and timing, however, as classes at COM often take place during regular school hours. Dexter Beers is a sophomore currently enrolled in the Chicano studies class.
“I thought it would be a great way to get a different perspective [on] something that isn’t offered here at Archie [Williams]. I also thought it would be a good way to immerse myself into a college-level class while not having to go to [the COM campus],” Dexter said.
Those who are able can take the COM class online, but many students find it to be an undesirable experience compared to in-person learning. Archie Williams Principal Jacob Gran described how beneficial it can be for students when the class takes place on the Archie Williams campus.
“The reason it came about is wanting to make sure that our students have access to forms of higher education, and so for some of our students, that means that we’re actually bringing the college to the high school. That [in turn] creates more access for students who might not be able to get to [COM],” Gran said.
Currently, there are approximately 15 students enrolled in the course. Gran explains how it takes time to encourage students to take advantage of these opportunities, and he believes that, over time, dual enrollment will grow.
“I think there’s a lot of wins with it, but it also takes time to build understanding and knowledge[…] so [more students] are interested [in the class],” Gran said.
Gran hopes that as the program continues, more students will be willing to participate, and they will be able to add more classes in future years. The Archie Williams admin team hopes to continue to collaborate with COM in the future so that students looking to take more unique courses have the option.
