As the year flies by, students are starting to look towards their futures. With many students looking at college as their next step, the dual enrollment program has become a key factor in many students’ schedules. 

For over 20 years, Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) and Ankeny Schools have worked together to offer the dual enrollment program. Dual enrollment gives students the opportunity to take all kinds of college-level classes, from general education classes offered at most colleges to more specific electives. However, unlike actual college classes, these are completely free, have more student-friendly schedules, and do not require any extra travel.

“When you go to college, it costs money each semester,” English teacher Karin Cowger said. “If working some in high school can get you some of those credits…I think that’s huge.” 

Along with the time and money saved by earning credits, the DMACC classes offered at AHS also provide other benefits for future college students.

“It is introducing students to kind of that college experience and college expectation,” DMACC advisor Kam Klaver said. Klaver has worked with AHS and other local high schools for 10 years.

Current AHS students that are taking DMACC classes are receiving this college experience on a daily basis through both the structure of their courses and the content itself. For example, in Cowger’s AP Language and Composition class, the dual enrollment language class offered for seniors, students wrote scholarship essays as part of their curriculum. Not only were they learning the skills necessary to write quality essays, but they were able to apply these skills in a meaningful way that could help them in their future.

“It kind of prepares students to enter the college level a bit better,” Klaver said.

Recent AHS alumni, especially those attending in-state schools, are also feeling the impact of taking college courses in high school, both through the dual enrollment program and the more nationally recognized AP (Advanced Placement) program. 

“If I didn’t have my [AP] lang and lit done, and my AP Stats…I’d have four heavy courses (this semester) instead of the two,” 2023 AHS graduate Katie Kirschman said.

While she did talk about finding AP classes like the ones she mentioned helpful, Kirschman also was able to find benefits through her dual enrollment-only classes. Among these was a block period nursing class that she said contained a lot of helpful information for her major. She said the transfer process was smooth in terms of the way classes line up, but also said she would recommend students to have their DMACC transcript on hand when talking with their college advisors to avoid miscommunication.

On the other hand, AHS also has students who decide to go out-of-state. Out-of-state students can also find benefits with dual enrollment, but for those attending certain schools, especially those outside the Midwest, they may find more benefits in taking AP classes to guarantee credit, as long as they get the required score on the test.

“I took as many AP tests as I could,” Kendra Winfrey, 2023 AHS graduate and current freshman studying psychology at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi said. “Some of them [the classes] transferred through DMACC, but out-of-state students should take the AP tests. It makes life a lot easier.”

This speaks to what could be the biggest benefit of AHS’ college course offerings- the versatility. While Winfrey found more opportunities from the AP classes and their transferability, others may find DMACC classes work better for their needs.

“A lot of times students who do well in school sometimes don’t do well on standardized tests,” AHS counselor Mici Vos said. “So for students who are enrolled in those AP courses that also received DMACC credit, they’re still able to get the kind of college credit that you can receive on an AP exam.”

In the end, it comes down to what works best for the individual student. Both Winfrey and Kirschman took different approaches to the college classes they took at AHS. However, both were able to find what worked for them and utilize what Ankeny had to offer to help themselves in their college journey. 

“Students, I think, get a nice mix that they get to choose what they want to do and how they want to do it,” Vos said. “I like that opportunity for them.”