CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Howell High School students were eligible for the Enhanced Dual Enrollment Pathway at Cleary. Cleary University actually has a separate partnership with Howell High School. We regret the error and apologize for any confusion it may have caused.


By Mike Kruzman / news@whmi.com
Edited by Jon King - jking@whmi.com


A new partnership will allow high school students with Michigan International Prep School (MIPS) the opportunity to graduate with not only a diploma, but also a degree and college credits from Cleary University.

Cleary’s tuition-free, four year Enhanced Dual Enrollment Pathway is a partnership with MIPS. By participating, students can shorten the duration of time spent towards a degree while doing it in very affordable manner. At the end of 12th grade, out-going MIPS seniors can graduate with an associate’s degree and 60 college credits from Cleary.

CU Interim President Emily Barnes said that as an educator at the college levels, one the things she sees most is the divide between students leaving high school and being prepared to start college. She said the reason she loves this program is that it introduces college early to the student - allowing them to get acclimated to the environment. Barnes says it can instill more self-leadership and individual ownership of their learning, while allowing them to explore different career choices and disciplines that might excite them earlier on.

MIPS students enrolled in the program get full rights as a Cleary student. This means they can make use of the campus, its online tools, eateries, library, and more. Textbooks, which can carry a hefty price tag at the college level, are also provided free to program students, online. Barnes said that as soon as students have access to their class, they can access their books, complete with features like highlighting, bookmarking, and text-to-speech capabilities, online. She said this is something they have been looking into implementing anyway, but the current environment has pushed it forward for this year.