In a partnership between I3 Academy and Jefferson State Community College, organizers hope to create a kindergarten to college or career pipeline for enrolled students.

I3 Academy, a K-8 tuition-free, public charter school network, will locate its new high school on Jefferson State Community College’s Birmingham campus. High school students will be able to to take dual enrollment college courses, which they can then use toward associate’s or bachelor’s degrees.

Supporters called the project “the first of its kind” in Alabama, and an effort to offer local students more choices and opportunities in both their K-12 experience and in college. i3 opened as an elementary charter school in 2020 and has since added middle school grades.

“Since the doors of i3 Academy Elementary opened in 2020, our dream has been to see our first class of fifth graders walk across the stage in their caps and gowns. Our partnership with Jefferson State goes beyond that dream by adding the benefits of dual enrollment courses and workforce preparation,” Superintendent Martin Nalls said in a statement.

Read more: How do charter school students perform compared to traditional public school students?

Students can also graduate from high school with technical certificates. The college is adding a new Workforce Education Center, which will allow the college to expand training offerings and accommodate the lineworker training program, HVAC technician training, electrical training and training for multi-trade crafts.

“Imagine an innovative, inner-city, public high school co-located on a college campus where high school students graduate from high school with their high school diploma and an industry recognized credential, and/or an associate’s degree, and/or enough dual enrollment credits to transfer into a four-year university as a second semester sophomore – welcome to I3 High at Jefferson State,” I3 Academy Board Chairman Dr. Tommy Bice said.

Jefferson State currently offers 116 transfer programs to four-year colleges, 39 career and technical education programs, 30 workforce education “fast-track” programs, and over 60 dual enrollment classes to more than 3,000 high school students.

Spots are available in the upcoming I3 Academy High School ninth grade class, which will be co-located on the JSCC Jefferson County Campus.

“These new initiatives will transform the landscape of both workforce training and high school education in the greater Birmingham area,” Jefferson State President Keith Brown said.

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