Pine-Richland graduate Kate Turner doubled-down on hitting the books in high school — so much so that she simultaneously earned a college business certificate from Community College of Allegheny County.

Turner, 18, will start Duquesne University this fall to study accounting.

“With my classes from Pine-Richland and my CCAC classes, I will have around 40 credits,” she said. “I hope to graduate from college a year or so early.”

Turner of Richland is one of 11 regional students to participate in the Dual Enrollment program at CCAC. Other students were from Highlands, Montour, Allderdice and Baldwin, among others.

Open to juniors and seniors, the initiative provides students with college-level classes — free or low-cost — before they earn a high school diploma.

The CCAC Dual Enrollment program offers three tracks — Standard, University Academy and BNY Early College — and in some cases enables students to earn a two-year associate degree.

Students can attend classes online or at one of the school’s four campuses. There are nearly 950 high school students in CCAC Dual Enrollment.

Turner ended up with nearly a dozen CCAC classes on her transcript, amounting to a big head-start on her college career.

She was hooked after noticing the certificate was backed by BNY.

“I have gotten the privilege to take the classes for free,” she said. “They even pay for my books, plus the program has paid me $200 for every A I get.

“The bonuses have been nice!”

Dorothy Collins, vice president of enrollment services and student affairs, said the program requires diligence, but the payoff is worth it.

“It takes a lot of persistence and determination,” Collins said. “They’re working on college courses as well as a high school diploma. That’s double duty.

“It speaks a high volume of what kind of students they are.”

Not only do high school students gain college credits, they get a jump start on the college experience, putting them on a path to future success, Collins said.

“It’s a very good way for these students to earn a certificate or degree,” Collins said. “They can use the certificate to continue on at CCAC or take it to another university. It’s less you have to take if you decide to continue on with your education.

“Or they can use it to apply for a job.”

Turner said that balancing high school and college-level classes wasn’t easy.

“I was taking an AP class and a CHS business calculus class and, on top of that, I work two jobs,” she said. “All of the classes I chose to take were online, which definitely helped with my schedule. I was able to work on the classes whenever I had free time.”

CCAC doesn’t require entrance exams, and there’s no fee to apply. The college is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, so credits transfer to schools across the country.

In 2020, BNY announced a $20 million multiyear commitment to workforce development programming at CCAC and the City University of New York.

Courses are offered in professional tracks of accounting, business and computer information technology.

Turner said the program gave her a taste of college life, and in addition to business courses, she tailored her studies to interests that include principles of retailing, personal finance and internet marketing.

“Right now, I would say I’d love to work for one of the big firms,” Turner said. “But that’s still years away, and we will see what happens.

“This definitely helped set me up for the future.”

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