Roane State Community College

Roane State Middle College students, from left, Brandon Buck, Brianna Casaus and Madison Duncan chat as they take a break during final exam week.

June 10, 2015

After one year of Roane State Community College’s Middle College program, three of the students selected for the program say the experience helped them grow academically and personally.

Roane State, in partnership with Roane County Schools, launched Middle College last fall. High school students who finish the program next year will earn an associate degree from Roane State and a high school diploma. Twenty-six juniors wrapped up their first year of Middle College in May.

“I have learned how to study, and I have learned that if you want to make good grades, it takes work,” said student Brandon Buck from Oliver Springs High School. “I also had to come in and make new friends. It's been fun, and it's been good for me that I had to make new friends.”

Madison Duncan from Harriman High School said Middle College helped her develop her time management skills as she adjusted to intense, 15-week courses.

“It’s definitely a step up,” she said, noting that she had spent six hours one day preparing for a chemistry final. “We were always working the whole time we were in class.”

Duncan said that college faculty and staff helped Middle College students learn to handle the increased workload. She said chemistry professor Steve Ward, for example, came to class early every day to answer questions.

Buck said of Roane State’s faculty, “They want you to do well in their classes. They want you to succeed.”

Student Brianna Casaus of Roane County High School said she “liked the freedom and how the teachers treat us like adults.” She also enjoyed interacting with other Roane State students.

“You get to hear new ideas, and you have people with different experiences,” she said. “I think Middle College is a good middle ground between knowing everyone (in high school) and meeting new people.”

Casaus said her favorite course was psychology with professor David Lane.

“I loved that class,” she said. “We had him for three hours a day for five days a week, and it was never boring.”

Buck said one of his favorite courses was English with Mike Hill, director of Roane State’s Learning Center.

“He’s really funny. He made it fun,” Buck said. “It was an open class discussion the whole time. In class, you were able to say what you wanted to say.”

Buck, Duncan and Casaus said they would recommend Middle College for other students.

“I would tell them to go for it,” Buck said. “You get to make new friends, and it can get you further in life.”

Duncan said Middle College is “going to be worth all the time we have had to put in when we are two years ahead of everybody our age.”

“At the end of the day, the advantages outweigh the cons,” she said.

Casaus said that although Middle College has a challenging workload, that's exactly what she wanted.

“I like having something to keep me busy, to constantly challenge me,” she said.

Candidates for Middle College are rising juniors who scored 22 or above on the PLAN test, a pre-test for the ACT. For more information about Middle College, visit roanestate.edu/middlecollege or contact professor David Lane, Middle College coordinator, at 865-882-4538 or lanedr@roanestate.edu.

Tennessee’s Community Colleges is a system of 13 colleges offering a high-quality, affordable, convenient and personal education to prepare students to achieve their educational and career goals in two years or less. All colleges in the system offer associate degree and certificate programs, workforce development programs and transfer pathways to four-year degrees. For more information, please visit tncommunitycolleges.org.