Alec Raines is a junior at Amador High School and is simultaneously working on his associate degree at Coastline College.

When asked why he decided to give college a try, he said he had signed up for an advanced placement (AP) history class and decided he didn’t want the excessive, yearlong workload to interfere with his other, more relevant, classes. His counselor, Lara Eichman, sent him to Amador College Connect in May, where we hooked him up with Coastline College for a summer course in American History. Throughout the 8-week semester, Alec made it a routine to come into the center to complete his coursework. He said the course required an average of 6.8 hours a week, which he said was not very difficult as long as he cut out the time for it. His diligence paid off as he received an A for the course as well as 10 high school credits toward graduation. When asked how it feels to be a college student at this young age, he said, “It’s nice to think I’m in college while in high school.” Alec plans to knock out more classes toward a Sociology associate degree while in high school. He is currently taking Introduction to Gerontology, learning about the sociological dynamics of aging in today’s world. For fun, Alec enjoys his Drama class with the legendary Giles Turner. He also loves avocados! Alec’s advice to other high schoolers who may be interested in dual enrollment is to plan ahead and get enrolled as early as possible. He also recommends choosing your workload carefully while in high school and learn what subjects you like and what possible careers you might want to pursue.