STANDISH – High school students are getting college credit through a program at Saint Joseph’s College.

Four students from Windham Christian Academy are taking advantage of a relatively unknown program at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.

The students, all juniors, are enrolled in a college writing course this semester through the school’s Early Scholars Program, and they can take up to four courses before they graduate from high school.

The courses cost $100 each, plus books and any lab fees. That’s a pittance, officials say, compared to what they would pay if enrolled at Saint Joseph’s, where the standard load of four courses costs about $15,000 per semester.

“It’s a great deal, really,” said Lynn Brown, dean of enrollment at the college and coordinator of the program. “If students took the four courses over the three semesters that they’re allowed to, they could come in as a second-semester freshman having paid $400.”

Saving money isn’t the only benefit, Brown said. Experience with college-level work, and interacting with college students and professors, can put participating students ahead of the curve heading into college, Brown said.

“Some students aren’t quite sure they’re ready for college-level work and this can help with their confidence. It eases the transition,” she said. “They can start out while they’re still in high school and have the support system in place and take the one course at a time and show themselves they can do the work.”

The program has been in place for at least 20 years, Brown said, ever since she was a guidance counselor at Bonny Eagle High School and worked to place students in the program. In recent years the college didn’t promote the program, having only placed 16 students from 2005 to 2011.

But since she’s taken over as enrollment dean, Brown has been more proactive by visiting area high schools and successfully recruiting several dozen students into the program in the last three semesters. This semester, a total of 29 students are enrolled. Half come from Portland High School but schools in the Lakes Region are represented, as well.

They must provide their own transportation, and the students must work with their high schools to coordinate their schedules. The Windham Christian Academy students, who don’t have access to Advanced Placement classes as other high schools do, are gaining double credit for their college class, credits toward their high school diploma as well as credits in college.

“Yes, it’s a great deal for the students, but it’s designed as a recruiting tool for us because it gets the students on campus and they have a great experience,” Brown said. “The whole thought process is, ‘Hey, I’ll continue my college education at St. Joe’s.’ And it’s also good for us because we get those top students.”

Students must have a B-plus or better grade point average to participate. But Brown, who determines eligibility, will consider other students as long as they have their guidance counselor’s recommendation, she said.

Handling the assignments in their college writing class is proving less worrisome than they expected, the four Windham Christian Academy students said. Matthew Gregoire of Windham, Erin Doughty of New Gloucester, Renee Seavey of Standish and Meghan Chalmers of Buxton are maintaining either an A or B average in the course, with is held Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8:30-9:30 a.m.

The course is taught by professor Richard Dennison. Students are learning how to write a persuasive five-paragraph essay, as well as brushing up on grammar and learning writing techniques.

“We encouraged them to do the writing class for their first experience over there because it would help make sure that they were prepared for any demands for writing, because any other class is going to be expecting them to write at a college level,” said Windham Christian Academy English and history teacher Natalee Stotz. Stotz also acts as coordinator for the Early Scholars Program on Windham Christian Academy’s end.

Stotz says the program also benefits Windham Christian because the college offers courses that the small Christian school can’t. In addition to college writing, Brown said students in the Early Scholars program usually take Introduction to Psychology, Introduction to Sociology, Introduction to Western Civilization, all core courses Brown said can be transferred to other colleges if students don’t pursue an education at Saint Joseph’s.

The four students aren’t sure whether they will enroll at the college after they graduate from high school, but each intends on going to college somewhere, and the students say the experience can only benefit them. Asked how they feel sitting in a college classroom and walking around a college campus, Doughty said they take it in stride.

“I think we blend in,” Doughty said. “I don’t think anybody knows except in our class. Nobody really knows we’re still in high school.”

According to Seavey, “having a good experience close to home” while still in high school should make going to college easier.

Gregoire said he intends to take “as many courses as I can to get ahead and pay less but get the same college education.”

Their teacher, Stotz, said the students are handling the extra workload well.

“I’m very proud of them, and what we’ve discovered is that they are very well prepared for the college classes,” she said.

Windham Christian Academy students, from left, Matthew Gregoire, Renee Seavey, Meghan Chalmers and Erin Doughty, are taking part in the Early Scholars Program at Saint Joseph’s College this semester. Their teacher, Natalee Stotz, second from right, coordinates the program. Staff photo by John Balentine