Do you want to do something more challenging than your high school curriculum? There are opportunities out there that your high school holds for you. There are informative clubs like DECA which help in the business aspect, if interested and participate it does include one of your high school credits. Now let’s look into the Columbia Basin College running start program. CBC runs a program for undergraduates which includes juniors and seniors. The application process is easy but long. Coming to you from experience, after taking your placement test you wait a couple of days to hear back if you got accepted or not. If you do, you get an email saying, “Congratulations” with your new CBC email and student ID. Once you have those steps done, there are a couple of informative modules you have to go through to get a little more insight into the CBC Running Start program. This program takes time and good communication with your school counselor.
I speak from personal experience when I say CBC was challenging. Balancing all the assignments that were long and in-depth and took hours to finish was difficult. My Counselor said “Yes, CBC is difficult, you are in a college with other college kids and professors who are going to treat you like an adult.” That’s exactly how you had to walk in there, being your own adult and nobody holding your hand. Your tuition is free and all you have to pay for your books that some classes might require you to have. Even with that, there is student aid for those who might need a little more help. At the end of that day your hard work really does pay off because you get the chance to graduate with your high school diploma and your AA (Associate in Arts) all in a span of 2 years.
If CBC doesn’t work for you there is always Tri-Tech available as well.
Tri-Tech is available for Juniors and Seniors. They offer 20 different trade classes such as Auto Body Technology, Auto Systems Technology, Computer Science/Cyber Security, Construction, Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, Dental Assisting, Diesel Technology, Digital Arts and Filmmaking, Early Childhood Education, Fire Fighting and Emergency Medical Services, Law Enforcement, Pre-Electrical, Pre-HVAC-R, Pre-Nursing, Pre-Physical Therapy, Pre-Veterinary Technician, Radio Broadcasting and Audio Production, Video Game Design and Welding Technology.
Applying to Tri-Tech is a simple process. First, talk to your counselor to ensure you can be enrolled in this program and have the credits needed to align with your pathway. Starting in January the online Registration opens, so be sure to send your application in. Each class has a limited number of students who can be enrolled so there could be a chance you get rejected from the program.
It is completely free to get into Tri-Tech, however, each class has different necessities you must purchase. The cost can vary depending on the program. However, the tiny bit of cost is worth the year of education that costs less than an actual college in any of these careers.
There are many benefits of taking advantage of Tri-tech. Tri-Tech is aligned with your high school so you can gain high school credits from being enrolled in any of these programs and it meets your CTE pathway to graduate. The schedule is constructed so you spend the school day, 3 hours at high school and then the remaining 3 hours at Tri-Tech, this allows you to make more friends with the students not only at your home high school. Kymber Boyer, a student in the Fire and EMS program at Tri-Tech says, “My favorite part of Tri-Tech is the people and relationships we can build. Tri-Tech connects you to people you wouldn’t be friends with or meet in day-to-day life. Being in a class for over two and a half hours, five days a week, we learn to build trust and become friends with each other because you never know what’s going to happen 10+ years from now.” Many students have the same positive experience at Tri-Tech and recommend it to other high school students because it is worth the work and effort!
