UNCG is online for high school students

GREENSBORO -- Worried about college costs? How about getting the first semester for free?

An enterprising high school student could do just that through UNC-Greensboro's iSchool, the nation's first virtual early college program.

Here's how it works: Juniors and seniors in participating North Carolina high schools -- there are 249 across the state -- take UNCG courses online and receive both high school and college credit.

A student starting as a high school junior could, conceivably, have 18 college credits complete by high school graduation day.

Oh, and it's free. The state picks up the tab as part of Gov. Mike Easley's Learn and Earn initiative.

"It's a remarkable opportunity for students in high school," said Robert Brown, dean of UNCG's division of continual learning. "Particularly those for whom college was not on the radar."

A similar program is available through more than 40 of the state's community colleges.

UNCG's program is the only one offered online to high school students, and officials there say it can be a great recruitment tool for UNCG and other universities.

"We know from national statistics that if a high school kid takes a college course, he is far more likely to go to college," Brown said.

High schools affiliated with the program screen potential students for the program.

It is proving popular, having grown from about 1,000 students in the fall of 2007 to more than 2,500 last fall. But there's plenty of room for more students; the state provides funding for 12,000 students a year.