| Early College High School College of Education |
BISD and UTB/TSC in a collaborative effort propose to increase the number of Hispanics and under-represented populations entering the STEM fields in higher education by providing these students with the support, skills, and background necessary to be successful at the college level. Through a rigorous, research-based curriculum with an emphasis on college readiness, participating students will graduate with a high school diploma, up to and/or 60 college hours, an associate’s degree, and the aptitude to continue their college education toward a bachelor’s degree and beyond in a STEM related field.
Beginning with 100 students in its initial year of implementation, the BECHS will add an additional cohort of 100 students per year until it reaches its capacity of 400 total students. Remaining small will enable the BECHS to focus on T-STEM objectives as well as the shared goals of BISD and UTB/TSC that will insure the continual success of the BECHS. These goals include:
1) Working with a diverse student population to create educated graduates who can pursue a higher education and will become responsible citizens in a changing global society
2) Enabling stakeholders of the BECHS to make curricular, structural, and personnel decisions that support blended education
3) Creating staff development opportunities that give teachers the capacity to design engaging, innovative, and imaginative curriculum that is linked to learning standards, based on best practices, and produces optimal leaning experiences for students.
4) Building leadership capacity at all levels to sustain the program.
The Brownsville Early College High School is an educational choice school open to Brownsville ISD students entering the ninth grade. It is designed to enable students to achieve two years of college credit, tuition-free, at the same time they are earning a high school diploma. Additionally, BECHS is designed to boost graduation rates and increase the number of high school students prepared for post-secondary success.
For more information visit the Brownsville Early College High School website.