Concurrent and Dual Enrollment

Concurrent and dual enrollment programs allow high school students in Colorado to enroll in postsecondary institutions and earn credit towards graduation. There are several programs available, some of which offer tuition reimbursement by the school district. For more information on the programs available in your school, contact the guidance counselor at your high school.

CDE and CDHE jointly created a website (opens in a new tab) that provides valuable information to students, families, and LEP/high school personnel on the state’s Concurrent Enrollment program and resources that benefit all stakeholders involved in the delivery and consumption of Concurrent Enrollment in Colorado. This resource will continue to be enhanced to reflect best practices in the field with resources such as:

video testimonials from students, parents, and school staff
a searchable tool to find district-specific Concurrent Enrollment information
questions to ask when considering participating in Concurrent Enrollment

Dual Enrollment Data

Program Type	Student Count Academic Year 2018-19	Student Count Academic Year 2019-20	Student Count Academic Year 2020-21
Total	50,416	53,245	51,383
Concurrent Enrollment	35,307	40,775	39,940
ASCENT	561	554	580
Other Programs	14,548	11,916	10,863

Colorado's Concurrent Enrollment Program

The program is open to 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th-graders who receive academic plan approval and meet application deadlines and college course requirements. 12th graders who do not meet graduation requirements and who are held back for instructional purposes may not enroll in more than nine credit hours for the academic year (per House Bill 09-1319, Senate Bill 09-285, Colorado Revised Statutes 22-35-101, State Board Rules 1 CCR 301-86;)

List of Current Concurrent Enrollment Cooperative Agreements

Statute (CRS 22-35-104) requires that Institutions of Higher Education provide a copy of their Concurrent Enrollment Cooperative Agreements with Local Education Providers to the Colorado Department of Higher Education, and state policy (Section I, Part N - Service Areas) directs the Department to annually update a list of these Cooperative Agreements. To that end, click on the below button to see the current list of Concurrent Enrollment Cooperative Agreements.

2022/23 Concurrent Enrollment Cooperative Agreements

Concurrent Enrollment Logo

In partnership with the Colorado Department of Education, CDHE has created an official Colorado Concurrent Enrollment logo for use in materials for official Concurrent Enrollment programs. Guidelines for how the logo can be used can be found here. Contact Carl Einhaus, Senior Director of Student Success and P-20 Alignment, if you wish to use the Concurrent Enrollment logo for program materials that meet the conditions in the guidelines: carl.einhaus@dhe.state.co.us

Service Area Designations and Concurrent Enrollment

CCHE Policy Section I, Part N, describes services areas for institutions of higher education in Colorado - including how they pertain to Concurrent Enrollment partnerships. In July of 2022, CCHE revised the policy so that service area designations are determined by the local or system governing board of the institution and not by previously prescribed geographical boundaries.

Local Education Providers (LEPs) should continue to partner with the Institution of Higher Education (IHE) with whom they have a Concurrent Enrollment Cooperative Agreement. If the LEP wishes to partner with a different two-year IHE the LEP should request that the two IHEs agree to the new partnership. LEPs can request cooperative agreements with any state four-year mission institution as they have historically had a statewide service area.

College changes within the Colorado Community College System (CCCS)

CCCS colleges utilize a notification system (instead of a waiver utilized in the past) – CCCS colleges will not deny their current LEP partners approval to work with another CCCS college as long as both the new college and LEP are willing. If the LEP wishes to contract with another CCCS college, it is recommended that they contact the CE lead at the new college they wish to partner with. If both parties agree to partner, the new college will contact the current college regarding the partnership. CE courses should NOT be offered until the cooperative agreement is signed by both the new college and the LEP.

College changes outside of CCCS

If one or both of the IHEs are not part of CCCS and they are not able to agree to the proposed partnership, the IHEs should refer to the dispute resolution process outlined in CCHE Policy Section I, Part K.

The above fulfills the requirement for CCHE’s statutory duty outlined in 23-1-109(6) to “publish a process through which a local education provider and an institution can resolve conflicts in or seek exceptions to the provision of concurrent enrollment programs or courses.”

*The below describes a service area waiver process created from statute. CCHE policy has made the below process unnecessary. However, the below will remain publicly available until statute has been updated.*

Per HB 18-1052 (opens in a new tab), a policy was created by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education for a Local Education Provider (LEP) to seek an exception to the statewide service area policy for a specific course or program offered through the Concurrent Enrollment Programs Act (opens in a new tab). The policy describes the process which can result in the LEP to be able to partner with an Institution of Higher Education (IHE) in a different service area. The below process can be used, but please note that it is not required as colleges within the community college system are addressing these requests internally - check with the college leadership to pursue the service area exception request to determine the process they prefer.

The LEP must request, in writing, a Concurrent Enrollment course(s) or program(s) from the IHE whose geographic service area it resides in. An IHE may agree to offer the course or decline to offer the course and allow a service area exception for a period between one and five years. If the IHE does not respond to the request, they will be deemed to have declined and the LEP may have a service area exception for two years.

LEP’s wishing to be granted a service area exception must use the Concurrent Enrollment Course Request and Decline Form below.

It is highly recommended that the LEP submit this form to the IHE at least one term prior to the term for which they are seeking an exception.

Please submit any questions regarding this process to the following email address: studentsuccess@dhe.state.co.us or call Carl Einhaus, Senior Director for Student Success and P-20 Alignment, at 303-974-2676.

ASCENT

The Accelerating Students through Concurrent EnrollmeNT program is a 5th year program for students prior to high school graduation and who are on schedule to complete 12 credit hours of postsecondary work prior to completion of 12th year. Participants are selected by high school admin and must meet class requirements and prerequisities; House Bill 09-1319, Senate Bill 09-285, Colorado Revised Statutes 22-35-101, State Board Rules 1 CCR 301-86;