Mechanicsburg teen on track to get college degree in 1 year

Jacey Wright used Ohio’s College Credit Plus program to take three years of college courses during high school.

A Mechanicsburg teen received enough college credit in high school that she likely will graduate from Urbana University with a Bachelor’s degree in psychology after one year.

Jacey Wright attended the online-based Ohio Virtual Academy for high school and graduated this past May with 98 college credit hours from Urbana University through the College Credit Plus program.

The Ohio Credit Plus program is offered to all public school students in Ohio in grades seven to 12 for no extra cost, according to Megan Daley, lead high school counselor at Ohio Virtual Academy. College classes count for high school and college credits.

“Credits will transfer to all public colleges in Ohio,” Daley said. “This (program) lets us take learning to the next step …

We’ve seen great success come out of the program.”

Classes start for the fall semester at Urbana on Aug. 22.

Jacey’s mother, Melissa Wright, enrolled her in the virtual academy when she was in fifth grade because she said Jacey wasn’t challenged enough in a traditional school. She began taking high school courses in eighth grade and has taken three years worth of college classes since ninth grade.

Jacey has always excelled in school, Wright said.

“She’s spent a massive amount of hours on schoolwork,” Wright said.

Jacey and her mother are thankful that the college credit program has saved them a huge chunk of the costs to attend a four-year university.

“This was a blessing financially for sure,” Jacey said.

She had to pick a major when she was 16 and an adviser suggested developmental psychology.

Jacey isn’t sure yet where she would like to go for grad school or for what. Her favorite classes have been those that encouraged public speaking like speech and ethics.

“I was taking classes to experiment,” she said. “If I change my major in the future, it’s not the end of the world.”

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