Benjamin Jackson rushed down the stairs at Jefferson High School in North Portland after finishing his final paper for his first college-level writing class.
“I had to go over it again and again to make sure it was error-free,” the high school junior said proudly in a gray hooded sweatshirt and crisp dark denim jeans.
Jackson completed his first term at Portland Community College last week as a student in Jefferson’s Middle College for Advanced Studies program. The program is a partnership between PCC and Portland Public Schools that began in 2007 and allows students to earn up to two years of college credit for free.
As a way to give financially needy students an opportunity to earn a four-year college degree, the University announced last summer it will give Jefferson students up to three years of free tuition — the only university in Oregon to do so. Eligible students must complete a full year of college credit during high school and their family must qualify for a federal Pell grant.
“The program closes the belief gap,” said Middle College Coordinator Damon Hickok.  “Even though PCC is right across the street, students still question if they’re ever going to go there.”@@http://portlandobserver.com/?p=7332@@
About 75 percent of Jefferson students are from low-income households. The school also has one of the highest dropout rates in Oregon — just 50 percent of students graduated in four years in 2010.
Hickok said 80 percent of the 30 students who took classes at PCC this term are from low-income families. Ninety percent of students will be the first in their family to go to college.
The University’s scholarship is available to 2012 graduates. Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships Jim Brooks said the University hopes to encourage more students to pursue a college degree.
“Students who might not think about going to college now have the opportunity to go on or continue a post-secondary education,” Brooks said.
Though the program is still young, Hickok said it has been successful so far. Most students have passed their classes at PCC. Of the 42 Middle College graduates in 2009, 85 percent continued taking college classes.
For students such as Jackson, the University scholarship has motivated him to increase his workload.
“When I heard of the UO scholarship, I thought, ‘That’s perfect,’” Jackson said. Jackson goes to Jefferson five days a week starting at 8:15 a.m. and has classes and tutoring sessions at PCC that last until after 8 p.m.
“It’s challenging,” he said of his schedule and college-level course work. “But it puts me ahead of the game and makes my high school work easy.”
Although few students have earned a full year of college credit, the University scholarship may motivate more students to follow Jackson’s lead.
“There’s a lot of buzz about the scholarship in the neighborhood,” Hickok said. “Students are taking more classes and they are wanting to know which classes will transfer and help them get into UO.”
Beginning this fall, all incoming freshmen at Jefferson are required to take at least one college class before graduating. Students usually take college classes during their junior and senior year once they are academically prepared, Hickok said.
Jefferson senior Robel Haile has earned 13 transferable credits. He is the first in his family to go to college.
“I completed my application to UO last week,” Haile said smiling. “My family is very proud.”
Haile hopes to earn enough credits by summer to qualify for the scholarship so he can attend the University next fall. Because his family earns about $24,000 a year, Haile didn’t think attending a four-year university was possible.
Both Jackson and Haile said they registered for more classes at PCC next term. With the opportunities Jefferson students now have, Jackson is motivated to continue his degree.
“I kind of always knew I wanted to go to college,” Jackson said. “But I didn’t know how I was going to get there.”