SCUSD expands dual credit offerings to increase opportunities for students

The San Carlos Unified School District (SCUSD) has greatly expanded its dual enrollment offerings, giving students an opportunity to earn college credits while they attend high school and encouraging teachers to seek advanced degrees to qualify to teach classes.

Thanks to partnerships with San Carlos Apache College (SCAC) and the Cobre Valley Institute of Technology (CVIT), the District’s vision of increased opportunities for San Carlos Apache students has taken a leap forward with more options to earn college credits or Career and Technology Education (CTE) certificates.

“This year has seen a significant expansion to the program that has been in place the last seven years,” says San Carlos High School Associate Principal and CTE Director Dr. Navdeep Rajput. “It was not on this large scale and was only offered to high school seniors, but has been extended to our juniors.”

Dual credit means students get double credit—both high school and college simultaneously—for classes included in the program that are since 2016 and is a former chemistry teacher at the high school. Two years ago, she was moved to an administrative position as an associate principal. In addition to her duties at SCHS, Rajput is an adjunct taught by qualified instructors. Students need 60 college credits to achieve an associate’s degree in Arizona, which translates into 10 to 12 classes throughout high school, according to Rajput.

Classes must be taught by instructors with a masters degree or higher and they must serve as adjunct faculty at SCAC. Thanks to nine years of teacher recruitment under the leadership of SCUSD Superintendent Dr. Deborah Dennison, the District has increased the number of qualified instructors, with added incentives for teachers to pursue graduate degrees if they do not already have them.

“We want to guide the teachers who do not have a masters degree yet, so that they should be inspired to get the degree,” SCHS Principal Durena Thompson says. “It’s kind of a symbiotic relationship, that they will benefit and the school will also be benefited. That will be our goal when recruiting instructors who can teach in our dual credit program.”

Students earn 0.5 credit for each semester’s class toward their high school transcript, while the same class for college is usually three to five credits depending on the subject. The credits go on students’ transcripts for life, but they must earn a letter grade from A to C for it to count towards college.

“We have to tell them before enrolling in the class that this is serious business because they are getting double credit,” Rajput adds.

The expansion of the program means that a record 61 SCHS seniors have enrolled in the current school year and 55 from grade 11 have matriculated as well. Classes offered include a wide range of disciplines, including college writing, pre-calculus and other math classes, business management and the Apache language, among many offerings.

In the 2025-26 school year, the District is planning to offer courses to sophomores in order to allow participants sufficient time to earn an associates degree. Earning the requisite number of credits can only be accomplished if the classes are offered for three full years.

San Carlos students can also elect to participate in CVIT programs to earn certificates in medical assistant, nursing assistant, welding, early childhood, and cosmetology. Beginning this year, electrical insulation and counseling programs have been added as well as HVAC. Thanks to help from CVIT, transportation is being offered to the EAC campus for students who may not have other options to attend classes in Thatcher, which is 30 miles from the SCHS campus.

In order to take CTE dual credit classes in the junior year, students must be on track to graduate and have good attendance, and “good discipline.”

“The vision is in place and we are very proud, but we have a lot to do,” Rajput says. “I’m so thankful for Ms. Thompson and Assistant Superintendent Mr. Shawn Pietila because we all share a common vision, and when the vision is common and when the goals are crystal clear, it’s more likely that you can achieve them.”

In addition to being SCHS Principal, Thompson is the President of the governing board for SCAC, which Rajput says has accelerated this enrollment “because of her vision, because she knows what’s going on in the college.”

“She knows the challenges and opportunities in the community, and her vision is to empower students in such a way that after graduation they have options,” Rajput says. “They should be so enlightened with these dual credits that they have the intrinsic motivation that as soon as they graduate from high school, their option is to contribute to the community, by either going to college to earn a degree or diploma, or go into the workforce or military. Knowledge is power for sure so we are just enlightening them, showing them that there is a different world out there they should go out and conquer.”

Ultimately, the goal of the District’s staff and administration is to give San Carlos Apache youths every possible opportunity to succeed in the world, both on the Reservation and beyond San Carlos.

“We share a common vision for a stronger, healthier San Carlos community,” Thompson says. “SCHS is grateful for the work of Dr. Rajput in working with students and staff on dual credit and grateful for the team and input of both Dr. Rajput and Mr. Pietila.”