Early College Academy (ECA)

Early College Academy at Cecil College

About Early College Academy

The Early College Academy (ECA) enrolls students beginning in grade 9. Successful students complete high school with a high school diploma (or its equivalent) and an Associates of Arts degree in General Studies from Cecil College.

Prior to their freshman year, ECA students participate in an orientation program to introduce them to academic expectations and resources available to them during their four years in the program. Throughout their enrollment, students are supported by tutors and advisors from Cecil College. While taking classes, students are guided through seminars and individualized advising to help them build the academic skills needed to succeed in high school and college coursework.

Cecil College has three separate Early College Academies. The first began in the 2014/2015 in partnership with Oxford Area School District in Pennsylvania. The second academy began in the 2017/2018 with local homeschool families and our third academy began in 2018/2019 in partnership with Cecil County Public Schools.

Selection Process for CCPS, Oxford, and Homeschool Students

Admission into the Early College Academy will be based on the following factors:

  • Students must be 14 years of age by December 31st
  • Minimum of 3.0 unweighted grade point average
  • Successful completion of Algebra I (or higher) in mathematics
  • Official middle school transcript or its equivalent
  • Review of student questionnaire

Note: No preference will be given for early applications. Applications will only be reviewed for completeness prior to the application deadline. All applications for acceptance will be evaluated at the same time.

Confirmation of Acceptance

After applications are reviewed, students accepted into ECA will receive a letter of acceptance from the Director of Early College. Upon receipt of an acceptance letter, students must sign an ECA letter of intent, confirming acceptance into their perspective Academy.

Fall Orientation

Accepted students will attend the mandatory orientation night in August.

How to Enroll

For 8th grade students interested in enrolling in one of Cecil College's Early College Academies, the process varies depending on where they plan to attend high school.

Cecil County Public High School Students

Students planning to attend a Cecil County public high school can find information about enrolling in ECA on ccps.org. The deadline for applications is April 16, 2021.

In addition, you can view a presentation on ECA, as well as watch a short video about the program.

Oxford Area High School Students

Students planning to attend Oxford Area High School can find information about enrolling in ECA on oxfordasd.org. Cecil College is conveniently located just 20 minutes from Oxford, PA. Bus transportation is provided by OASD for Oxford High School ECA students traveling to the College.

Online Application Submissions

Please submit completed applications to the following link by July 15, 2021: Oxford ECA Applications 2021. This link is secure and will be viewed by April Stern, Director of Early College.

Please do not email applications due to personal identifiable information (PII). This link is also available through oxfordasd.org.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email April Stern at astern@nullcecil.edu or call (410) 287-1045.

Homeschool Students

Applying

Note: The ECA application packet for homeschool students will be made available by January 2021. Please check this page for updates.

Submit the documents contained in the application packet by July 15, 2021. Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.

Online Application Submissions

Please submit completed applications to the following link by July 15, 2021: Homeschool ECA Applications 2021. This link is secure and will be viewed by April Stern, Director of Early College.

Please do not email applications due to personal identifiable information (PII).

If you have any questions, please feel free to email April Stern at astern@nullcecil.edu or call (410) 287-1045.

Confirmation of Acceptance

After applications are reviewed, students accepted into the ECA will receive a letter of acceptance by July 15. Upon receipt of an acceptance letter, students must sign an ECA letter of intent, confirming acceptance into the Academy by August 1st. Signed letters can be sent via:

  • Email as a PDF attachment to April Stern, Director of Early College, at astern@nullcecil.edu.
  • Mail to:
    Cecil College
    Attn: April Stern, Director of Early College
    1 Seahawk Drive
    North East, MD 21901

Fall Orientation

Accepted students will attend the mandatory orientation night at Cecil College in August. ECA schedules will be provided the night of orientation.

More Information

If you have any questions or want more information about ECA, you can fill out our inquiry form or contact April Stern at (410) 287-1045 or astern@nullcecil.edu.

Request for Information

Website Privacy Policy

Cecil College maintains this website to inform you of the many offerings and activities pertinent to the institution. We appreciate the trust you place in Cecil College, and we are committed to respecting your privacy and the security of your personal information. Our privacy statement, dated October 2006, describes the information we collect and how we use it. When using this site, you agree to the terms and conditions listed in the statement.

Privacy Statement

For each visitor to our web site, the web server automatically recognizes the visitor’s domain name. We do not link IP addresses to personally identifiable information. No marketing databases are created as a result of your visit, nor are there any commercial uses made of any such data.

Cecil College does collect the following information:

  1. the domain name of visitors to our web page.
  2. aggregate information on what pages visitors access.
  3. certain technical information, such as the browser version and operating system.
  4. broad demographic information for aggregate use.
  5. the e-mail addresses of those who voluntarily communicate with us via e-mail.
  6. information volunteered by the visitor, such as survey information and/or site registrations.

The information collected is used:

  1. to improve the content of our web site.
  2. to analyze usage trends.
  3. to notify visitors about updates to our web site.
  4. by us to contact visitors for marketing purposes.

If you supply us with your postal address on-line, you may receive periodic mailings from us with information on new class offerings, services or upcoming events.

If you supply us with your telephone number on-line, you may receive telephone contact from us with information regarding new class offerings, services or upcoming events.

If you contact us voluntarily via email, you may receive email messages from us with information regarding new class offerings, services or upcoming events.

The Cecil College web site may contain links and information from other institutions and/or organizations. Cecil is not responsible for the privacy practices of these institutions and/or organizations, access is at your own risk. Cecil College will not sell, rent, or lease your e-mail address to others. Cecil does not set any cookies.

If you have questions about this privacy statement, you may contact us by mail at the following address:

Communications Office
Cecil College
One Seahawk Drive
North East, MD 21901

You may send e-mail to the Communications Office at communicationsoffice@cecil.edu. You may call us at (410) 287-1000.

If you do not wish to receive emails, mailings or phone calls from Cecil College please request removal from our lists through the contact information listed above. If you wish to update your contact information, please inform us at the above.