UW-Whitewater’s Dual Enrollment Programs Awarded for Excellence in Enrollment Management

November 9, 2026

Written by Kari Borne

The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s dual enrollment programs have earned national recognition for achievement in online education and enrollment management.

UW-Whitewater was named winner of the 2026 Excellence in Enrollment Management Award, which is given to programs that model best practices and combine excellence with superior results.

“UW-Whitewater’s dual enrollment programs clearly demonstrate student success in a wide variety of districts — including 20 in rural areas — across the state,” said Jackie Briggs, vice chancellor for strategic enrollment, retention and marketing. “As an institution with a deep commitment to access, these programs help us reach more students, extending our boundaries well beyond southeastern Wisconsin.”

UPCEA, the online and professional education association, sponsors the annual competitions recognizing the best in marketing, enrollment management, and student success (MEMS), and will honor this year's award recipients at its 2026 MEMS conference.

The recognition of the top award recipients will be shared with conference attendees in an interactive panel. Morgan Anderson, assistant dean for the School of Graduate Studies and Continuing Education, will represent UWW’s dual enrollment programs on the panel at the conference on Dec. 2 in Orlando.

Students aged 14 to 18 participate in dual enrollment when they are enrolled in both high school and college classes concurrently. Dual enrollment allows them to make progress towards their diploma while earning college credit. At UW-Whitewater, there are several pathways to earning credit. The university’s School of Graduate Studies and Continuing Education dual enrollment programs include College Credit in the High School, Early College Credit Program, and the Warhawk Dual Enrollment Academy.

The results across dual enrollment programs demonstrate both enrollment impact and student success. Statistics from the 2025-2026 academic year include:

• 953 high school students participated in dual enrollment programs, earning 4,439.5 college credits
• Students and families saved $1.18 million in tuition and fees
• Students averaged a 3.35 GPA in spring 2026
• 83% of surveyed participating high school seniors identified time management as a primary skill developed through their dual enrollment coursework 

Early numbers in the 2026-2027 academic year indicate that UWW has served over 700 students through dual enrollment programs with students enrolling in more than 860 classes. Final numbers will be available in early 2027.

Creating access to college coursework in rural communities

Launched in fall of 2024, the Warhawk Dual Enrollment Academy was created to build a robust model that gives high school students throughout Wisconsin access to high-quality college coursework while preparing them to succeed as college students. An additional goal was to help students build an early connection with UW-Whitewater by engaging them with UWW faculty, university credit, academic expectations, student support systems, and future educational pathways.

Through district partnerships, special tuition arrangements, transferable credit, asynchronous course delivery, faculty engagement, and embedded student supports, the Academy removes barriers related to geography, transportation, scheduling, staffing, and local course availability. This model allows students from across the state, including rural and geographically distant districts, to access rigorous university coursework while remaining connected to their local schools and communities. 

“The Warhawk Dual Academy has been a game-changer for our students. As a rural district located nearly an hour from the nearest university, many of our students would otherwise have limited access to college courses,” said Cole Van Schyndel, ’17, M.S. ’20, school counselor at the Blair-Taylor School District in northern Wisconsin. “This program removes these barriers and provides students with endless opportunities to earn college credits and experience the rigor of college courses, while remaining connected to their local school and community.”