Julian Maturen sits in the corner of Sweet Waters, his tea piping hot. Steam rises as he waits for it to cool. Maturen has an open block and is down at Sweetwaters before he has to get back to class.
Maturen is a freshman at Pioneer High School (PHS) and split enrolls into CHS for the first half of his day. Maturen split enrolled because of the renowned jazz program at CHS.
Maturen was convinced to join the CHS Jazz program when the jazz band performed at Tappan Middle School when he was in eighth grade. Maturen was amazed by their talent and skill; it was an unreal moment for him.
“It was unlike anything I had ever seen, they were just amazing, and it was the main thing that inspired me to join Jazz,” Maturen said. “I wanted to be just like them and be able to play just like that.”
Since many of his friends attend PHS, he takes the majority of his classes there. He’s able to have the best of both worlds when it comes to schooling.
Towards the end of his eighth-grade year, Maturen tried out for the Jazz program at CHS and was accepted. At first, he was not too sure about split enrolling and didn’t want to get his hopes too high. He did not want to get set on split enrolling until he got accepted into CHS.
“I think it’s really great that Community has this split enrollment opportunity for everyone. The fact that I go to Pioneer and I still am able to go play jazz at Community has been so great for me so far,” Maturen said “I would highly recommend split enrolling to people who may be on the fence about it.”
CHS has many things to offer aside from just their jazz program. Their arts and theater programs are just as renowned; Plenty of students split enroll for those factors as well. They are known for their arts, theater, and their journalism program. But they also offer great academic opportunities outside of those elective classes. So it is a great option for many different people, looking for different things.
Many incoming freshmen who are considering split enrollment feel intimidated by the logistics.
Maturen handles mid-day transfer through a combination of parent pick-up and carpooling with other split enrollees. He finds the transfer to be smooth, especially because teachers at CHS and PHS are flexible and understanding about the time constraints.
There are plenty of forms of transportation that students can use to get to and from their different schools. Many students use the city bus to get from one school to another, while others receive rides from parents or peers.
Split enrollment into CHS is open to any student attending Huron, Skyline, or Pioneer, regardless of whether the student was accepted into the CHS lottery or not.
Maturen has loved split enrollment so far and is so glad that he is able to take jazz at CHS while still going to school at PHS for the majority of his day.
Overall, split enrollment is a great option. It opens doors to great experiences for lots of students. It’s a great opportunity for those who don’t want to go to CHS full-time, or for those who did not get the opportunity to.
“If you’re on the fence about split enrolling, then I highly recommend doing it,” Maturen said. “You are still able to go to your home school but with the benefits of Community and the school that you are attending.”
So Maturen’s experience so far has been very positive, and he has been able to expand his academic opportunities further than he had thought possible. Looking into the future he will most likely continue to split enroll and is excited about his current opportunities and the ones that are to come.
