Student Will Simultaneously Graduate from AHS and NOC

Until the fall of 2006, Alva High School senior, Kellie Whipple never imagined that she could graduate from high school and college in the same month. However, in May, Kellie will walk across the stage at commencement ceremonies at Northern Oklahoma College (NOC) earning an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Information Technology. Kellie will also graduate from Alva High in May.

“There are quite a few students who could also pull this off, if they set their mind to it.” said Whipple. “Anyone should do this whether they want to pursue a career in web design, business or accounting or just learn a skill that they can use in college.” The dual graduation was accomplished by enrolling in courses at NOC in conjunction with her high school curriculum. She earned college credit through competencies earned in the Web Development and Graphic Design program at Northwest Technology Center.

According to Whipple, the Associate’s Degree will end up costing her about $1500 which includes books. She will finish the degree in May and will receive her diploma on May 3. Whipple took several core curriculum classes on-line from NOC including Comp I, Comp II, US History Since 1865 and Government. She took a CLEP test for Algebra and also completed a Speech class at Northwestern Oklahoma State.

“I am planning to enroll at Oklahoma State next fall,” stated Whipple, “I will be a junior with 63 hours and I plan to major in Animal Science. I am really looking forward to meeting new people. I am planning to use the skills that I learned at Northwest Technology Center to design websites, so that I can make some money while I am in college and in vet school.”

“My parents are really happy that I am saving time and money on my college education,” continued Whipple. “My instructor, Mrs. Frascht has helped me a lot by encouraging me to do this and helping me to get enrolled. Without her assistance, I’d just be starting college like any other freshman.”

In addition to many other honors, Whipple is an institutional nominee for the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE) scholarship, a result of her high ACT score. She can use the scholarship to cover her expenses at OSU. Whipple is looking forward to pursuing a career in veterinary medicine. She is the daughter of Mandy and Alan Whipple of Alva. She is active in the Nazerene Church and is an officer in FFA and in 4-H. At Northwest Technology Center, she has been a member of the Business Professionals of America and the Superintendent’s Leadership Class. In her spare time, she enjoys playing the guitar.

Northwest Tech currently has cooperative credits available through the following schools:

Northern Oklahoma College

The following are programs that are approved for college credit at NOC:

Degree Requirements may be viewed from the NOC Website. Students may check with their instructors for more information about the eligibility requirements and enrollment procedures.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University

Northwestern Oklahoma State University has a new Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences Degree with a Technical Management major. This program provides students who transfer to Northwestern from a community college with an Associate of Applied Science degree a course of study to complete a bachelor's degree. In addition, it will allow program credit for CareerTech students who have earned industry recognized certification through a national or vender specific examination and/or documented by the American Council of Education (ACE) to be transferred to Northwestern. The degree is also available for students who enroll at Northwestern and pursue a national certification as approved by Northwestern.

Details of the program are available in pdf format from the NWOSU course catalog.

OSU-Okmulgee

The following are programs that are approved for college credit at OSU-Okmulgee:

2006-2007 OSU-Okmulgee Cooperative Alliance Enrollment Forms

Requirements and Changes for Cooperative Agreement Credit (As of August 2006)

Adult Students

• Adult students must pay $8 per credit hour.

High School Students

• Only high school students who meet one of the following criteria will be able to enroll for Cooperative Agreement Credit:
  • Score 19 on ACT
  • Score 15 on PLAN
  • Have a high school GPA of at least a 2.5
• A parent or guardian must sign a statement of understanding.
• High school students will now get a college transcript immediately after they complete the semester and their grades are turned in to the college. Previously high school students had to wait until they enrolled and completed 12 hours of residency credit at the college before they could get a transcript.
• High school students will receive a letter grade (A, B, C, D, etc.). Previously high school students received only a Pass/Fail grade and had to make an A or B in the course (no A or B requirement now).
• Students must pay $8 per credit hour.

More information

To learn more about the alliance program or for more information about college credit, please contact Karen Koehn, Counselor, at the Alva Campus at 580.327.0344, or Patty Lovell, Counselor, at the Fairview Campus at 580.227.3708.