The number of students who take Post-Secondary Education Options (PSEO) has doubled at Miami University’s regional campuses. Education experts predict that this trend will continue to increase dramatically throughout the next decade.

“We think that this trend will continue for the foreseeable future,” said Jan Toennisson, Miami University Middletown’s director of public affairs.

In 2008 Miami University’s regional campuses had a total of 195 high school students taking classes on campus. There are currently 422 students enrolled this fall.

According to Monroe High School principal Bob Leahy, Monroe has 50 students taking PSEO courses on area college campuses. He isn’t surprised by the rise in high school students who are currently enrolled in a college class. They’re seeing opportunities that weren’t available to high school students in the past.

In order to apply for participation in PSEO, high school students must have a minimum GPA of 3.0.

With this post-secondary education option, students are given the opportunity to earn a high school and a college credit at no cost to the family. The high school’s state foundation pays the college tuition of the high school student directly if the student is enrolled in a public high school. If the student is enrolled in a nonpublic high school, the cost is subsidized by funds set aside by the Ohio General Assembly in each biennium and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, Toennisson said.

PSEO is not only a good way of getting high school students a firsthand college experience, but it is also a good way to lighten their workload in the future as freshmen in college.

“It’s just a fantastic option that we have in Ohio that other states don’t have,” said Middletown High School guidance counselor Julie Barber. “Indiana does not have that. Texas, which is pretty progressive educationally, does not have that. It is a great augmentation to the advance placement classes that schools offer. It’s another choice.”

As the state attempts to increase the percentage of Ohioans with an associate’s or bachelor’s degrees, educators believe that post-secondary options will transform the education system in years to come. At only 26 percent of adults statewide with a bachelor’s degree, Ohio lags 5 percent behind the national average for bachelor’s degree holders.

“There’s nothing more important for the economy in the state of Ohio than getting its workforce ready for the challenges of the next century,” said Bruce Johnson, president of the Ohio Inter-University Council and a task force member.

Number of Post-Secondary Education Option (PSEO) students enrolling on Miami University campuses.

Fall 2008 — 195 (4 percent of student population)

Fall 2009 — 225 (4 percent)

Fall 2010 — 293 (5 percent)

Fall 2011 — 326 (5.5 percent)

Fall 2012 — 422 (7.5 percent)

Source: Middletown Journal