In 2022, Savannah Hood participated in the Sand Creek High School graduation ceremony with her classmates, but did not receive her diploma. More than 18 months later, she still doesn’t have it. But in a few months, she’ll have her Sand Creek diploma, an associate’s degree from Pikes Peak State College (free), and a running start toward a degree in history and secondary education.

Hood, 19, is part of the first cohort of participants in the state’s Teacher Recruitment and Education Program, or TREP, which gives qualified students the opportunity to earn college credit — at no cost to them or their families — for up to two years after their 12th-grade year.

“The TREP program is specifically meant for students on an educator pathway,” said Shonda Green, concurrent enrollment coordinator for District 49. “It’s a way to help us grow our own teachers.”

When Hood heard about the program from a Sand Creek counselor, she thought it was an ideal fit for her personal career path.

“I’ve always wanted to be a teacher,” she said. “I like helping people, and I want students to feel safe, happy and comfortable when they’re learning.”

D-49’s concurrent enrollment program allows students to take free college courses while still enrolled in high school, but the TREP program takes it a step further, letting senior students take up to two more years of free college classes if they are on a path to a career in education.

“If they plan ahead with their counselors and take one class from a list of courses during their senior year, they can get two years of college for free,” Green said. “It’s a great program.”

School districts are not required to cover administrative fees under the TREP program, but District 49 does, according to Green.

Because TREP students are required to be officially enrolled at a high school, Hood did not receive her diploma in 2022, but she and her family were allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony.

“That seemed a little odd,” she said. “But it’s just a small bump in the road.”

As one of TREP’s inaugural participants, Hood is in a unique position to inform and advise prospective students about the program. In fact, the Colorado Department of Education asked her to do just that, and she has spoken via Zoom with a cohort of future TREP students.

“At the state level, they’ve leaned on Savannah a little bit to help explain the program,” Green said. “It’s been nice to watch her progress through the last two years, and I’m excited for her.”

Hood, who hopes to get her bachelor’s degree at University of Colorado Colorado Springs, said she would recommend the TREP program to aspiring teachers.

“If you have a good advisory and support group — which I do — TREP is a great option,” she said. “I’m able to pursue my career goals in a more affordable way than if I had immediately enrolled in a four-year college.”

Savannah Hood, 19, pictured Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024 at Pikes Peak State College’s Rampart Range Campus, is part of the first cohort of participants in the state’s Teacher Recruitment and Education Program, or TREP, which gives qualified students the opportunity to earn college credit. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)

Christian Murdock/The Gazette