Four SSHS Seniors Graduate from the College of Southern Idaho

On Friday, May 10, Soda Springs High School had four seniors graduate from the College of Southern Idaho (CSI) with their Associate of Arts Degrees in Liberal Arts. They all started this 60-college course load their sophomore year in high school, if not sooner. Some did extra coursework during the summer months to accomplish this feat. All students took advantage of the $4,125 the state provides for Advanced Opportunities to pursue and pay for this degree, college credit, overload courses, examinations, etc. All students, statewide, from the beginning of their 7th grade year in school are given this money. In most cases, this money will not completely cover the costs of an AA degree, but for these four students, it covered a large portion of the bill, making it worthwhile to pursue. The money and time it saves for these students act as a wonderful scholarship at whatever future college they attend beyond high school by reducing their college course load by two years.

Cierra Capell, daughter of Rachel and Chris Capell, will be attending Idaho State University for a bachelors in Communication Science and Disorders and then a doctorate in Audiology. She said, while very time-consuming, she enjoyed the classes going the associate route. She saved time and money getting this degree, and she would definitely do it again.

Quinten Hansen, son of Amanda Steele and Kyle Parker and Josh and Amity Hansen, will be attending Idaho State University in the fall, pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering. He felt the pros of the associate degree provided the cheapest way through a college education and an overall sense of accomplishment. Quinten felt the associate degree set him up well for his bachelors. The cons include extra homework, difficult classes, and not being in classes with his friends at times. If he had to start high school over again, he would absolutely do it again, but he would focus on dividing his difficult online classes with more fun classes.

Avery Johnson, daughter of Lauren and Brian Johnson, will be attending Idaho State University in the fall. She will be in the Honors Program at ISU, majoring in Biology with a cellular, molecular and biomedical emphasis. She would like to attend the Physician Assistant program at ISU later after her bachelors. She would definitely do the associate route over again if given the chance. She is very thankful to the State of Idaho for providing this opportunity.  She said she was given many learning experiences and opportunities. One of the cons to the associate route is having to pay for some of it at the end when the $4,125 runs out.

Kylee Rasmussen, daughter of Brandy Bredehoft and Jason Rasmussen, will be attending Idaho State University in the fall, pursuing a Nursing degree. Kylee felt the associate route in high school was hectic and busy at times, but it was worth it. While it felt like a lot trying to manage the college level courses, it has made a huge impact on her academic journey. She also felt that some of the classes she took helped her decide her career as well.

These students did not take the easy route in high school. Finishing and completing an AA degree from CSI is a difficult and time-consuming task. These students often sacrificed many things to reach this goal. Congratulations go out to these four Soda Springs High School and CSI graduates!