An Inside Look into the Life of an OMHS JumpStart Student

Many students at Oakland Mills participate in the JumpStart program, but many do not know what it is. JumpStart is a program that allows for high school students to take college classes at their high schools and at Howard Community College (HCC) to earn college credits. During your sophomore, junior, and senior years, students have the opportunity to take college course classes in the Oakland Mills building with certified college instructors. 

The sound of all these college courses in high school may be intimidating to some. I sat down with Oakland Mills senior, Kendal Wilson, who is a part of the JumpStart program. She began to take college classes on the Howard Community College campus this school year. She took an English composition class, a Statistics class, and a Spanish class in the fall. Kendal takes the Intern-Mentor class at OMHS that meets every 6th period in accommodation with her internship at a local physical therapy facility. After asking how she liked her classes, she said that she thoroughly enjoyed her classes and the challenges that came from them. More specifically, Kendal explained that her classes required more studying and homework than her high school classes have in the past. This spring semester, Kendal is taking a general psychology class, where we are classmates, as well as a Nutrition class. Overall, Kendal states that she has really enjoyed her experiences doing the JumpStart program. 

There are many components that go into deciding whether or not the JumpStart program is the right fit. Kendal offered some more insight into her experiences outside of the HCC classrooms. Since students in the JumpStart program are not at Oakland Mills High School taking classes for the entire school day, there are some more things to consider. She is a competitive swimmer that has swim practices every day. She also has an internship that she attends about two or three times per week. Kendal stated that she has had more time to prepare for her extracurricular activities, including swimming. She explained how nice it was to have time for her extracurriculars as well as time to study and accommodate the workload for her classes to work on her time management. Kendal also said that it has prepared her more for the college lifestyle, which she will begin to live in this coming August.  

With all of her positive experiences in the JumpStart program, there also are some other things that are important to consider. Kendal explains that she does not go to Oakland Mills every day for a class which made her feel distant from the school community and activities at times. However, OMHS is great about creating a great sense of community, no matter where your classes take place or how long you are in the school building every day. She stated that she is excited for more upcoming senior events and activities as her senior year comes to an end. 

When asked if Kendal would recommend the JumpStart program to students that are potentially looking into it, she said, “Taking classes at HCC has allowed me to better prepare myself for going to college in the fall and expand my horizon to other people and experiences.” She also talked about how great of a benefit it is that there are no tuition costs with taking classes at HCC, which makes it more affordable for her and her family. 

Overall, the JumpStart program is a great opportunity for seniors to take college classes at Howard Community College and begin to prepare for their college experiences!