Northern Lakes College Dual Credit not just for high school students
disappointed, thinking she wouldn’t
super-supportive, and really fun to see
be eligible to enrol. When she learned
my virtual classmates congratulated at
that students were welcome to join the
the online convocation,” she enthuses.
program regardless of their graduation status, as long as they were under the age of 20, she was thrilled.
The online experience benefited Dejong in unexpected ways. Once familiar with online learning, she soon
Dejong explains, “A big reason why I
found she was confident with online
hadn’t pursued college was because
job interviews, too. She secured a job
I didn’t want to leave my hometown.
working in a sixth-grade classroom in
Jenessa Dejong wasn’t looking to enrol
When I learned I could become an
southern Alberta. She also plans to
in a college program when she first
educational assistant through NLC at
coach volleyball on a volunteer basis
learned about Dual Credit programming
Barrhead Outreach School, I was like,
in her new community. She says, “I
at Northern Lakes College (NLC).
‘Sweet! Cool!’ I was even able to work
come from a small community with a
full-time while I studied. I worked at “I hadn’t really been thinking about my
parent-run school. My mom and dad
a construction company painting and
education, but showed up to a meeting
were always helping out at the school,
helping with construction, and the
about program options on a whim
fixing up things and catering fundraisers.
whole experience was lots of fun!”
Seeing them as leaders showed me a
because my twin sister was interested in becoming a health care aide. A pamphlet
She planned to complete most of the
the presenter gave out mentioned the
program remotely, so the educational
Educational Assistant program, and I was
experience was seamless, even as
really interested in that,” Dejong says.
the COVID-19 pandemic upset the
However, the Education Assistant program was only being offered as part of the Dual Credit program in Barrhead, Dejong’s hometown. The Dual Credit program is traditionally offered to high school students, as a way to earn credits towards a high school diploma
rest of the world’s routine. Despite the geographical distance between her and the other students, Dejong became active on the Northern Lakes College Student Association and felt as though she got to know her instructors personally.
great example as what it means to be a volunteer.” In the future, Dejong may consider pursuing an education degree but, for now, she’s happy to simply impart advice for prospective NLC students: “I didn’t think I would go to postsecondary school because I hadn’t graduated as an all-star student. My advice to other students would be no matter what your high school marks
while also studying for a post-secondary
“The other students and I were really
look like, if you’re passionate about
program. As Dejong had graduated high
interactive, responding to posts and
your future and willing to work for it,
school the year before, she was initially
collaborating on projects online. It was
anything is possible! Go for it!” n
20 Alberta School Counsellor / Spring 2022
