Innovation In The Early College Model: Hartford Magnet Trinity College Academy

Abstract

In June 2011 Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut entered a partnership with the Hartford Public Schools to launch an innovative early college model of public education. The new Hartford Middle Magnet Trinity College Academy (HMTCA) represents an expansion of the Hartford Middle Magnet School (HMMS) from a 6-8th grade school, into a 6-12th grade academy. Although Trinity has had multiple connections with the middle school, the new high school provides the college an opportunity to help prepare students for college success at Trinity and other institutions of higher learning. The partnership also allows the college to fulfill its commitment to urban engagement at the local level. Finally, it is an opportunity for the college to recruit high-achieving Hartford public school students who might select other colleges. In this paper the early college model designed by Trinity and the Hartford Public schools is presented. A proposal for the best method to measure the successfulness of the partnership is also developed. This innovative evaluation method can be applied beyond HMTCA and applied to other early college high schools across the nation.