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Early College High School to be announced Aug. 20

Las Cruces Public Schools and New Mexico State University will announce plans for southern New Mexico's first Early College High School at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 20, in the atrium of O'Donnell Hall.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Public Education Department Secretary Veronica C. Garcia will speak at the announcement.

The Early College High School (ECHS) will be located in the Arrowhead Business and Research Park on the NMSU campus and will open in summer 2011 to ninth-graders from LCPS, Gadsden Independent School District and Hatch Valley Public Schools. It will serve a maximum of 500 students. Students will have dual enrollment in high school and NMSU's Doña Ana Community College and will graduate with high school diplomas and two-year associate's degrees, as well as credits toward a bachelor's degree.

Students who attend the Early College High School will be able to make use of many NMSU libraries and fine arts and athletic facilities.

"We are so excited about this partnership among the educational institutions in Doña Ana County to create an Early College High School," said LCPS Superintendent Stan Rounds. "Around the country, these types of schools have a dropout rate of about two percent, and we expect the same here. The ECHS will have a very strong academic focus and will help students make the transition to higher education."

Rounds said students will be recruited from the middle 70 percent of students in grades 9-12 in all three participating school districts and that many who attend will be the first in their families to go to college.

"Early College High Schools foster an environment that allows students to believe, ‘Yes, I can succeed in college'," said Michael Morehead, the College of Education's interim dean.

Garrey Carruthers, College of Business dean and vice president for economic development, said, "This partnership with Las Cruces Public Schools will make our community stronger by giving students a solid foundation for success."

Also scheduled to speak at the announcement are LCPS Superintendent Stan Rounds, Interim President Manuel T. Pacheco, Executive Vice President and Provost Waded Cruzado, DACC President Margie Huerta, and Suzanne Quillen, chairman of the board of directors of the Bridge.

Written by Julie M. Hughes.