First group of 10th graders enjoying Polk State collegiate high school experience

For more than two decades, Polk State College has provided a unique experience through its collegiate high schools. Since the start of the semester, students at two collegiate high schools have been able to soak up the experience for a little bit longer.

For the first time during the Fall 2024 Semester, Polk State Lakeland Collegiate High School and Polk State Chain of Lakes High School expanded to accept 10th-grade students. Previously, the experience was just for high school juniors and seniors.

“My 10th grade experience has been extremely positive,” said Layla Palmer, student at Chain of Lakes. “It’s a different environment. The staff really focuses on the students’ needs.”

Collegiate high schools allow students to take college courses and get the experience of a college atmosphere throughout their high school years. In most cases, students graduate simultaneously with their high school diploma and Associate in Arts (AA) degree at no cost to them.

“The opportunities they provided were incredible – to be able to achieve an associate degree while graduating high school,” exclaimed Dennis Fetty, student at Lakeland Collegiate. “I want to get a doctorate, so this is a good pathway to my goal.”

Previously recognized as the top public high school in Polk County by U.S. News & World Report, Lakeland Collegiate is housed on the Lakeland Campus. For its most recent graduating class, more than 80% of the 139 graduates earned an AA degree.  Graduates combined to earn more than $3 million in college scholarship rewards and more than 17,000 community service hours.

“My favorite thing about Lakeland Collegiate is the staff,” 10th-grade student Gianna Mobley noted. “Their demeanor shows that they really want to help us out.”

Located on the Winter Haven Campus, Chain of Lakes has received an A grade from the Florida Department of Education each year since 2015. Chain of Lakes had nearly half of its 2024 class graduates with a grade point average of 4.0 or greater.

“I chose Polk State Chain of Lakes because I have an older sister who went through this program,” Ellie Mole explained. “She told me about all the opportunities. I wanted to go a step further and give myself a better opportunity than what the other high schools can offer.”

Collegiate high school students can join clubs and organizations and take part in activities specific to their high school like prom as well as those for the College at large. They can also continue to participate in afterschool activities for their zoned public school. Mole, for example, remains a multi-sport athlete at Lake Wales High School.

“My schedule is hectic,” Mole said. “I go to school, then I go to the library for about 30 minutes, and from there, I go to high school golf and then go to soccer. It’s a good opportunity because I can still do things at my old high school (and things) that I probably wouldn’t be able to if I went to a normal high school.”

Fetty and Mobley both have dreams of earning a doctorate degree. Choosing Lakeland Collegiate is a step toward accelerating that process.

“My career goal is to be an orthopedic surgeon,” Mobley explained. “Lakeland Collegiate is helping me gain my experiences and what I need to do by helping me get my AA degree, so I can work toward getting my doctorate.

“I would recommend this program because of the opportunities that the AA degree provides,” she continued. “It speeds up your time in college.”

The benefits of attending a collegiate high school, however, don’t stop there. Palmer noted the smaller class sizes provide for more individualized attention from faculty.

“At high schools, there’s so many people,” Palmer said. “There’s just not enough time in the day to work with every student but here, they truly want to help everybody. They truly want to push you forward in your education and help you with your personal goals. It’s amazing.”

Palmer also enjoys the schedule flexibility and access to college resources.

“The student life is very freeing,” she added. “You have so many opportunities on campus. You have complete access to the library and educational books that are different from regular high school libraries. It’s been truly amazing with how much more we are offered here.”

The application period for Chain of Lakes begins Friday and runs through March 7. Lakeland Collegiate will accept applications for the entire months of January and February.

While Lakeland Collegiate and Chain of Lakes serve 10th, 11th, and 12th grade, Polk State Lakeland Gateway to College Collegiate High School is also an option for students with at least nine high school credits. For 2024, nearly half of Gateway’s graduating class earned an AA. All three schools will hold information sessions throughout the next three months.

“The main thing that stands out to me about the collegiate experience is having the opportunity to achieve an AA while working with an organization and staff that is very helpful,” Fetty opined. “It gives you the opportunity to not have to pay for the associate degree. It’s a real help for anyone who wants to go to college.”