Jumpstarting Their College Careers: High School Students Earning Credits and Pursuing Their College Degrees This Summer

Smart Transfer students sitting in classroom during Western Civilization course.

7/05/2023

When Stani Saldana, a Schenectady City School District rising junior, thinks about his future, his thoughts turn to rockets, space, and the universe. “Every kid likes space,” he explained. “But it stuck with me and never really diminished. I’ve always been interested in space and building rockets, and also computers and playing with different programs.” Stani is getting a jumpstart on his dream of studying aerospace engineering as one of more than 120 high school students who are earning their associate degrees and their high school diplomas at the same time through the Schenectady Smart Transfer Early College High School Program.

Student smiling, sitting in Western Civilization course

They are taking courses on campus and online this summer, along with 200 students in the Schenectady Smart Scholars Early College High School Program that offers students the opportunity to earn an average of 24 college credits by the time they graduate from high school. Students are taking a variety of courses including Western Civilization, History of Art II, Programming Fundamentals, Public Speaking, First Year Seminar, College Composition, Statistics, College Algebra and Trigonometry, U.S. Government and Politics, Introduction to Psychology, and Sociology.
Students standing outside in quad, smiling

Instructor teaching while students are listening during Wester Civilization course
Instructor Bryan Florkiewicz’s Western Civilization course.

Four students, smiling, standing in hallway

Stani is taking Statistics and Computer Science courses toward his degree in Math and Science. He began taking college-level courses during the summer before ninth grade. Next year, he and the other juniors in the Smart Transfer program will take all of their classes on the SUNY Schenectady campus, and do the same during their senior year.

“My parents always told me to take advantage of any opportunity you can,” Stani said. “My brother, who is now studying Computer Science at the University of Albany, was in the program also so I’m following in his footsteps.”

Professor teaching as students are listening during History of Art course.
Instructor Oscar Alberto Bogran’s Art History course.
Two students, sitting near fountain, smiling

Student sitting at desk in Western Civilization course

Students and professor smiling, standing in classroom

Tasleema Baksh and Stani Saldana with Instructor Robert Higgins, following their Statistics course.

Smart Transfer student Tasleema Baksh is also a Schenectady City School District student taking college classes full time during her junior and senior year of high school. With dreams of becoming a pediatrician, she is on her way toward earning her associate degree in Science with a concentration in Biology.

“There is a lot of school involved with becoming a doctor,” Tasleema said. “Instead of spending 12 years in college, I can spend 10 years. Smart Transfer is also free which is great.” So far, Tasleema has earned college credits by taking Psychology, First Year Success Seminar, Western Civilization, and College Composition. This summer, she’s taking Statistics.

She shared that adjusting to “college life” hasn’t been difficult because of the support of the staff in the Smart Transfer program. “The staff make the transition from high school to college easy, even though we’re doing it much earlier in life.”