LAKE CHARLES, La. – Today the Board of Regents, in conjunction with the Dual Enrollment Task Force, released the 2023 Dual Enrollment Report while visiting Lake Charles-Boston Academy of Learning. The Academy is home to the Virtual Instruction Program, which has increased dual enrollment offerings to all high schools in Calcasieu Parish.
This year’s statewide Dual Enrollment Report highlights the expansion of the program, with 32,577 high school students enrolled in courses at public colleges and universities in Louisiana during 2022-23, a 13% one-year increase. Minority student participation in dual enrollment courses has increased over three years by seven percentage points, with a faster-than-average growth in the numbers of African American and Hispanic students. National research indicates that students who take dual enrollment courses are more likely to enroll in, persist in, and complete college, so this expansion in numbers and across populations is significant.
“We are excited to see the year-over-year growth in students starting college in high school – enrolling in career and technical courses as well as academic courses,” said Commissioner of Higher Education Dr. Kim Hunter Reed. “More students and families are seeking these early pathways to success, and it’s our goal to expand this opportunity to every high school student in Louisiana. That’s why we released the report at the Virtual Instructional Program in Lake Charles, a place that is successfully increasing dual enrollment access to every high school in its district,” Reed said.
In addition, the report spotlights the growth of dual enrollment participation in career and technical fields to a level that now exceeds pre-pandemic enrollments but must expand further across the state. The report also notes that the opportunity to begin college in high school continues to be out of reach for many of Louisiana’s students due to costs to families or limited course availability in their community. To address these challenges, the report presents a series of recommendations by the Dual Enrollment Task Force including providing new state funding to support universal access for all high school students and aligning the state’s accountability system to incentivize more early college program participation.
“We are committed to high-caliber dual enrollment opportunities for students. By providing this college-level access in high school, it provides a real benefit for families,” said State Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley.
“Our dual enrollment students take their success and use it to further their college career,” said dual enrollment teacher Samantha Jacobson. “They can take what they learn about how to study and how to prioritize what they learn in high school and continue to apply it in college.”
“This year, the (Virtual Instruction Program) allowed me the opportunity to take more dual enrollment courses,” said dual enrollment and DeQuincy High School student Loni Sanders. “I’ll have over 30 credits when I graduate high school, so I can graduate a whole year early from McNeese State.”
Attendees of today’s event included Calcasieu Parish Superintendent Dr. Shannon LaFargue, Assistant Superintendent of Career and College Readiness at the Louisiana Department of Education Dr. Ernise Singleton, Task Force members, dual enrollment faculty, and students.
To access the new Dual Enrollment report, click here.
Contacts
Dr. Chris Yandle, Assistant Commissioner for Public Affairs
chris.yandle@laregents.edu • 985-373-5845
Melissa Maranto, Communications Director
melissa.maranto@laregents.edu • 985-516-5121