University News

WIU-QC Offering Early Bird Classes for Quad Cities High School Students

November 19, 2019

Share |
Printer friendly version

MOLINE, IL -- Western Illinois University-Quad Cities is excited to announce a new opportunity for Quad Cities-area high school students, available in Spring 2020. Students will have the opportunity to get an early start on college through WIU's "Early Bird Course," Financial Health (General Education/Human Well-Being course).

This course develops strategies for achieving and maintaining well-being through personal finance skills. Topics include wellbeing as it relates to cash management, credit management, sources of educational funding, rental agreements, basic investments, taxes, insurance, financial math and career planning.

"Students develop an understanding of the basics of financial responsibility and the resulting impact on their personal well-being," said Assistant Professor Stephen Gray, who will be teaching the course. "They acquire personal finance skills that help them recognize the need to make a financial decision, and the corresponding impact on their personal well-being."

The Financial Health course starts Monday, Jan. 13 and ends Saturday, May 16. It will be taught on the WIU-QC campus on Mondays and Wednesdays from 7-7:50 a.m. Tuition for high school students is $197.40, plus the cost of books.

WIU-QC also offers two "after school" dual enrollment courses to area high school students, including Digital Earth (GIS 108) and American Popular Music (Mus 195). The Digital Earth course, taught Mondays from 3:30-4:45 p.m. and Wednesdays from 5-6:50 p.m. on the Quad Cities campus, is an introduction to various applications of mapping and navigational technology (Google Earth, photography, GIS and GPS) used in daily life. This course involves student presentations and projects focused on basic principles and applications of this technology.

The American Popular Music course is a survey of American popular music from the 19th century to present. This course includes extensive listening to representative styles and outstanding works within those styles, with discussion of historical,
sociological, and musical influences. It will be held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30-4:45 p.m. on the Quad Cities campus.
 
Dual enrollment programs can be very beneficial to high school students. These programs allow students to take college credit courses while they are still in high school. According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, "Such programs allow students to earn credits for free or at a fraction of the cost that they would pay in college. The courses have also been shown to improve educational outcomes, like progress toward a degree." Dual enrollment programs can also prepare high school students for college courses and ease anxiety about going to college.

For more information about WIU-QC's dual enrollment program, visit wiu.edu/highschool.

Posted By: Olivia Morris (om-morris@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing