Starting this school year, some previous dual-credit classes, including personal finance, will no longer be offering college credit, according to business teacher Richard Reid. In the past, students who took personal finance were eligible to get three credits through Ivy Tech, but this year, Ivy Tech is no longer offering that option.

According to Reid, Ivy Tech once had a separate list of dual-credit courses, in addition to the list that Indiana has always had. The change in dual-credit courses this year was the result of a change in Ivy Tech’s policy; now, Ivy Tech only allows a class to offer dual-credit if it is on the state’s required list of dual-credit courses.

Reid said, “It’s not the state’s fault. It’s not Ivy Tech’s fault. It’s just a change in the policy that created a snowball effect to where dual-credit status is no longer given to personal finance.”

Senior Andrew Kathan, a student in personal finance, admitted that it was a slight disappointment that the class did not offer dual credit anymore but said it is still a very useful class to take.

“It’s one of the most relevant classes I’ve ever taken,” Kathan said. “It’s such mindblowing material that they’re teaching you. It seems so basic, but it’s something you’d actually never think about.”

Both Reid and Kathan said personal finance is definitely a class worth dual credit. Reid and some administrators will soon be working with the state legislatures to try to add personal finance on the list of dual-credit courses.

According to assistant principal Bradley Sever, the only other class that is no longer offering dual credit is culinary foundations II, not because it’s not on the state’s list of courses, but because not enough students were interested in taking it.

Although having dual credit is an existing incentive to take personal finance, Kathan said the class itself and the knowledge gained from it are worth much more in the end.

He said, “The quantity of knowledge is not always greater than the quality of knowledge, and the quality of knowledge in personal finance is something out of this world.”

He admitted that it was a slight disappointment that the class did not offer dual credit anymore but said it is still a very useful class to take.

Reid said, “One of the things that we’re going to work on is to try to resolve this issue before next year so we can give really strong students who need college credit an incentive to take this class.”