Cross Creek Early College Receives Blue Ribbon Status

Cross Creek Early College High School, on the campus of Fayetteville State University (FSU), has been named a National Blue Ribbon School for 2020. Cross Creek Early College is one of 367 schools in the nation and one of only three in North Carolina to receive the recognition.

To be eligible for the honor, a school must meet several criteria based on the performance of its students on state assessments in reading (or English language arts) and mathematics or a composite of performance on these assessments with other measures of student performance (e.g., student growth on state assessments, performance on state assessments in other subjects, graduation rates, or other indicators in the state's accountability system). High schools must also meet criteria based on graduation rate.

Cross Creek Early College is a public urban innovative high school located on the FSU campus. What makes CCECHS distinctive is its partnership with the university, affording the opportunity for students to earn 60 or more college credits while completing high school diploma requirements. The school's tagline, "College Begins Here," reflects the commitment to not only make students college eligible, but college ready. Students enjoy individualized attention that emphasize academic, personal, and social growth, meeting students where they are in the journey to be a college graduate.

A highly accelerated program, CCECHS provides daily social-emotional development activities that focus on relationships, respect, and responsibility. The Academic College Readiness classes, taken all four years, prepare students for the rigor and relevance of high school and college. Cross Creek goes beyond book learning each day. Students are comfortable and confident in their roles as early college students.