New Online D2D High School Dropout Program Sees Success in First Year

WICHITA, Kan. - June 24, 2014 - PRLog -- The strategic partnership formed in 2013 between eduKan, Lyons USD 405, Pratt Community College and CompuHigh named Diploma to Degree Program, or D2D, is the first of its kind in the United States to offer concurrent courses along with dual credits delivered virtually via the Internet enabling adults to earn their high school diploma.

One special success story is of Iris Penaloza-Flores, a 22-year-old wife and mother from Wichita, who dropped out of high school in order to get married and start a family. However, after quitting high school, she often hoped she could go back and get her diploma. After hearing about the D2D program on the radio, Ms. Penaloza-Flores enrolled in the program and earned her high school diploma from Lyons High School at a graduation ceremony on May 20 when she became the first graduate of the Diploma 2 Degree program.

Penaloza-Flores said that she wants to continue her education by taking a college class to see how that goes. Eventually, she would like to become an elementary school teacher.

The Diploma to Degree (D2D) Program is open to all adult Kansas residents who have not received their high school diploma, providing the opportunity to receive it from an accredited institution. Funded by the State of Kansas, D2D’s tuition-free online program will give adult students the ability to earn the credits needed to complete their high school education while also earning credit towards an Associates Degree utilizing digital learning materials that can be accessed through the Internet from PCs, laptops or tablet mobile devices.

Lyons superintendent Bill Day said, “The premise is that a high school diploma opens many doors for graduates, but continued education beyond the high school level opens even more.

“If someone completes the courses required to graduate from high school including a couple of dual credit courses and realizes that he/she can be successful at that level, that person is more likely to continue with additional college coursework.

“The statistics speak loud and clear. On average, the more education a person has, the more employable that person is and the better pay that person will receive.”

The Diploma to Degree program is available for students to enroll online via their website for no fee. The D2D program also includes five college-level courses for which the high school student receives dual credit from Lyons High School and Pratt Community College.

About Diploma to Degree Program

Lyons USD 405, Pratt Community College, eduKan, and CompuHigh have partnered to provide the first program of its kind that is free and allows adults to earn their high school diploma while also earning college credits towards an Associates Degree. Lyons USD 405 is located in Lyons, Kansas and serves K-12 students. Pratt Community College is a two-year community college located in Pratt, Kansas and is a member of the eduKan consortium. eduKan is an online consortium of six colleges in Kansas, including Pratt, that offers online college courses visit http://www.edukan.org. CompuHigh is a private, accredited, online high school established in 1994 and provides individual courses as well as a diploma program and is accredited by AdvancED and is an approved course provider for National Collegiate Athletic Association. For more information, please visit http://www.diploma2degree.org.