New enrollment cap need not affect Running Start students at Centralia College, director says
Running Start students at Centralia College should expect little, if any, impact on their enrollment following new legislation - so long as they consult with their academic advisers, according to a news release from Amanda Haines, director of college relations.
The state program gives juniors and seniors in high school the opportunity to earn both high school and college credits for tuition-free classes offered at community and technical colleges.
In March, the state Legislature passed a 2026 supplemental operating budget that effectively decreased the funding Running Start students can receive to 1.3 FTE, or full-time equivalent.
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) uses FTE to measure a student's "instructional enrollment."
Previously, the state allowed students up to 1.4 FTE between high school and college.
According to OSPI, 1 FTE equates to 27 hours and 45 minutes of weekly high school classes, or 15 enrolled college credits.
State Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, commenting in February on a proposed House budget that would have set the cap at 1.2 FTE, said the change amounted to $14 million in cuts to early higher education.
The passed March budget put that total at $7 million. The legislative change applies only to the 2026-27 and 2027-28 academic years.
According to Haines, 591 students were enrolled in Centralia College's Running Start program in the 2024-25 school year.
Haines said the new restrictions "represent a very small reduction in the total number of classes students are able to take tuition-free at Centralia College."
According to Haines, advisers at the college are now hosting Running Start orientation sessions for the summer and fall, and are "working closely with students and high school counselors to stay within the new restrictions."
To learn more about Running Start and the orientation schedule at Centralia College, visit www.centralia.edu/admissions/running-start.
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