NYC Public Schools moves to launch early college program with Delaware State

By Danielle McLean

New York City Public Schools is working on launching an early college program with Delaware State University for the 2025-2026 school year.

The early college program, called HBCU Early College Prep High School, will be the first such collaboration between a historically Black college or university and a school district that’s located in a state without an HBCU, according to Chyann Tull, a New York City Public Schools spokesperson.

Early college programs are jointly run by high schools and colleges and allow high schoolers to take college courses for credits toward an associate or bachelor’s degree. These programs can help make college more attainable for low-income, first-generation and racial minority students — and lead to better educational outcomes.

Since 2002, when the Gates Foundation launched an early college initiative, the number of such programs have grown to more than 1,000 throughout the U.S., according to the nonprofit American Institutes for Research.

In the New York City school, students will take college courses starting in 9th grade — allowing them to earn an associate degree for free with their high school diploma. They will also be automatically accepted to Delaware State when they graduate, Tull said in December.

Administrators at Delaware State declined to comment in December on the program since “the formal agreement has not been finalized by the two institutions,” said Carlos Holmes, a university spokesperson. As of Feb. 4, the agreement was not yet finalized but the two parties were close to completing it, Holmes said in an email.

School districts and colleges need to consider several factors when building early college partnerships, experts say.

In general, early college programs can “really inspire students” to move on to two- or four-year colleges after graduating high school, said Russell Olwell, dean of education and educational partnerships at Middlesex Community College and an expert on early college and dual-enrollment programs.

Many students don’t realize the extent to which early college can move them ahead or how much money credits earned in high school can save them down the road, Olwell said.

First-generation students and students of color “have been less involved in early college and dual enrollment historically, and programs like this could help turn this situation around,” Olwell said. “This program could be impactful on its own, and could inspire other efforts from HBCUs across the country.”