Lansdale Catholic High School and DelVal announce partnership

As a result of a partnership agreement signed Thursday, June 2 between Lansdale Catholic High School and Delaware Valley University, students will be able to earn college credits while still enrolled at the high school.

“Lansdale Catholic looks forward to starting and expanding this new partnership with Delaware Valley University,” said James Casey, president of Lansdale Catholic High School. “The partnership will provide students with the opportunity to explore new subjects and potential majors at a university level. We feel this opportunity will help set our students up to excel in college.”

Under the Dual Enrollment/Dual Credit Program agreement, DelVal will start offering university-level courses at the high school this fall.  Students will be officially enrolled in the courses at both the high school and the university and receive academic credit from both schools.

Credits and grades will be recorded on an official DelVal transcript. Students will be able to apply the credits toward both a bachelor’s degree at the college of their choice and their high school graduation requirements.

“We are pleased to provide high achievers with the opportunity to challenge themselves academically while still at Lansdale Catholic High School,” said DelVal President Dr. Joseph Brosnan.  “There is growing evidence that students who take dual courses in high school are more likely to succeed in college.”

DelVal courses will be offered at the high school during regular school hours so that they don’t disrupt schedules.  The courses will be provided at a reduced partnership tuition rate of $100 per credit.

“Programs like these dual enrollment courses help make a college degree more affordable,” said Art Goon, vice president for enrollment management at DelVal.  “We hope to see the program grow at Lansdale Catholic, and would like to extend the opportunity to other high schools in the area.”

The first course offered through the program will be Introduction to Psychology.  More than 30 students have already indicated an interest in enrolling in the course. 

“We’re excited to give the Lansdale Catholic students a taste of what DelVal has to offer,” said Dr. Allison Buskirk-Cohen, chair of DelVal’s undergraduate psychology department. “We hope this opportunity fosters a love for psychology and helps students better prepare for their futures.”

Participants will be required to attend an orientation program on DelVal’s campus before taking courses. At orientation, the will meet their instructors, learn about the classroom technology, purchase their textbooks and receive their DelVal ID cards.
 
DelVal and Lansdale Catholic are discussing adding additional courses.