Hard work runs in the Wooley family – and so does Piedmont Technical College (PTC).
Nathan Wooley, a senior at Dixie High School in Due West, has already completed firefighter recruit school and volunteers with the Antreville Fire Department.
“My dad (Robert Wooley) and my brother (Nick) did it and I kind of grew up around it,” Nathan Wooley said.
Wooley is also studying Mechatronics Technology at PTC as a Dual Enrollment student. He’s taking some of the same classes his father did years ago. This spring, he will earn an associate degree from PTC and receive his high school diploma.
Dual Enrollment is an advanced-credit program for high school juniors and seniors. Different classes are available online, at the student’s high school, or on a PTC campus.
There are four ways to take part in Dual Enrollment at PTC:
• Traditional Dual Enrollment courses are taken at the student’s high school with their high school instructors.
• OnDECK classes are offered on a PTC campus and let students earn high school units and college credit at the same time.
• PTC has partnered with some school districts on a Middle College that allows high school juniors and seniors the chance to earn 48-plus college credit hours.
• Early admission is for students looking to earn credit through PTC, but not through their high school.
Wooley attends classes at the Greenwood Campus.
“I have some classes in person throughout the week and some online as well,” he said.
During the summer between his junior and senior years of high school, he took several courses through Dual Enrollment.
Dual Enrollment course offerings are based on a student’s area of study. Typically, a wide range of general education courses are offered, from English and history to macroeconomics and trigonometry.
PTC’s Mechatronics Technology Program combines elements of electronics, pneumatics, hydraulics, mechanics, IT, computers and robotics.
Wooley has an “outstanding work ethic,” said PTC Mechatronics Technology instructor Wayne Miles.
“If everybody had the same work ethic, a lot more stuff would get done – that’s for sure,” Miles said.
Sam George, program director of the college’s Mechatronics Technology Program, said Wooley “capitalized on an opportunity that is available to all students who start their Mechatronics journey at the beginning of their junior year.”
“What makes him stand out is his maturity,” George said. “He took the initiative to sacrifice the summer between his junior and senior year of high school so that he could attend classes here at PTC.”
Some Dual Enrollment students are planning for advanced degrees. Others are seeking a credential that will allow them to begin a professional career as soon as they leave high school. Wooley is undecided for now but hopes his path leads to the aerospace industry.
College tuition is getting more and more expensive. For the freshman and sophomore years, costs at some South Carolina public colleges and universities can be more than $20,000 – just for tuition and fees. And that doesn’t include room and board or any of the other costs associated with attending college.
Dual Enrollment at PTC is designed to be affordable to all students. South Carolina residents can attend tuition-free at their high school, on campus or online.
Before applying, students should understand Dual Enrollment is an opportunity to take courses at the college level, so the amount of work necessary to succeed is usually much greater than in high school. Because dual enrollment courses become part of a permanent college transcript, students must commit to doing the work needed.
“I’ve enjoyed them a lot more than high school classes, actually,” Wooley said. “Some are more difficult than others.”
He recently made the President’s List, recognizing his 4.0 grade-point average during the semester. He said his dad graduated from the Mechatronics curriculum with a 4.0 GPA.
