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HANCEVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – Wallace State announced that they will be offering a summer bridge program for qualifying high school seniors on Thursday.

Start Right Summer Bridge program will provide incoming freshman with academic, motivational, social and scholarship support in the span of three weeks. The program is aimed to help financially in-need students get on the right path to degree completion.

The students that qualify and participate could potentially avoid taking the general studies level math and/or English classes, which could save them almost $2,000 in tuition and fees. They will also earn one college credit by completing the Freshman Seminar during the Summer Bridge program.

The main campus in Hanceville will offer General Studies, Career Technical Studies, and Health Science Studies options. A second General Studies option will be available at the Oneonta Campus.

Christine Wiggins, Title III Coordinator at Wallace State, said, “With COVID, we know there are students who may have suffered academically, which could create a barrier to them entering college. With the Start Right Summer Bridge program, we’re hoping to level the playing field and make that transition a bit smoother, save them from taking developmental classes that would add time and cost, and introduce them to the college in a way that may actually put them ahead of the game when classes start in the fall.”

Applications will be accepted through May 30 for the 2022 Start Right program. Classes will be held for four days a week, six hours a day for three full weeks. Offered as a hybrid program, two of the four classes will be held on campus while the other two are held online. Lunch will be provided everyday that students are on campus.

The program is open graduating high school seniors in the Wallace State service area who have a math or English ACT of 18 or lower or a GPA lower than 2.75 plus a C or lower in Algebra II and/or English IV if they do not have an ACT score. Income eligibility requirements will be determined during the application process. Students can apply online.