Career Technical Education Programs

Students wishing to enroll in a full Career Technical Education Program, which consists of multiple courses, must attend an orientation session, and go through an evaluation process.  All full Career Technical Education Programs have the following minimum requirements:

• Students must be 18 years of age
• Students must have a high school diploma, GED, or prove their Ability to Benefit through Federally recognized means (See Below)
• Students must take a CASAS Reading and Mathematics test, and score at a minimum level dependent upon the program

Programs may have additional requirements.

Individual Career Technical Education Courses

Twin Rivers Adult School offers a limited number of courses that may be taken individually.  These courses may be attended by any adult who pays the appropriate fees, and completes the appropriate paperwork.

Students may qualify for admissions via various means.

Providing a Copy of Diploma, GED, Transcripts, or Associate Degree

The easiest and preferred method for a student to prove their completion of high school or equivalent is to provide a valid copy of their high school diploma, GED, CHSPE, Transcripts, or an Associate Degree (or equivalent foreign degree.)

Self-Certifying that a Student has a Diploma or Equivalent

Twin Rivers Adult School recognizes that there are many valid reasons why a student can not obtain proof of their diploma.  Foreign students may have left their country under duress and can not obtain documentation from their former nation.  Students may have lost their diploma, and the school may have lost their records.  Twin Rivers Adult School allows students to self-certify that they have completed a diploma for most programs.  (There are some programs that have a legal requirement to have a physical diploma produced, in which case, self-certification is not an option.)

Students who choose to self-certify must make every effort possible in an attempt to obtain their diploma, and must explain why they can not get their diploma by completing a Diploma Self-Certification online form.  This form must be approved by administration before students can enroll.

Proving Ability to Benefit

Students not possessing a high school diploma, GED, or equivalent, may prove their Ability to Benefit within the program in either of the following ways:

1. Take a Federally Recognized Ability to Benefit Exam. (These exams are not currently offered at our school, but you may take the exam at a different school and transfer the results to us.)
2. Students who do not need to be admitted under advisement (See CASAS evaluation), may petition the principal for admittance.  Students admitted under this method are not eligible for Pell Grants until the successful completion of at least 225 hours of their program.  Students who otherwise would qualify for a Pell grant, may get an Ability to Benefit Tuition Deferment during this time, to allow them to attend until they qualify for the Pell grant.  (See the Financial Aid Handbook for More Details)

NOTE: As of July 1, 2012, students will not be able to use the Ability to Benefit provision to get a Pell Grant.  At that time, we will revisit our admissions policy for students without a diploma or equivalence who do not pay using a Pell Grant.

Checking the Validity of a High School Diploma

If Twin Rivers Adult School has reason to believe that the high school diploma is not valid or was not obtained from an entity that provides secondary school education, we will evaluate the validity of the student’s high school completion.  Students who have produced a document from a diploma-mill, who have forged documentation, or who have lied during self-certification will have administrative action taken, which may include loss of financial aid, suspension, and/or expulsion.

Twin Rivers Adult School follows a general calendar that is negotiated with Twin Rivers Unified School District, and the latest general calendar can be found on the calendars section of the district website.  Career Technical Education programs generally follow a system of 6-week sessions, including 3 sessions during the Fall Semester, 3 sessions in the Spring Semester, and 2 to 3 sessions in the Summer Semester.  Session details can be found in the current class schedule.

Students must arrange the payment of fees before starting their classes, in one of the following ways:

• Students may pay all their fees up-front via cash, credit card, or check.
• Qualified students may receive a Pell Grant which will cover their fees, see our Financial Aid Handbook for more details.
• Students who are receiving financial support from another organization, grant, or scholarship can provide proof of this funding.
• Students may arrange for a payment plan.

Note: Fees may change without notice at any time. 

Students who have completed an equivalent course at an accredited postsecondary school or college may transfer these course to Twin Rivers Adult School at the discretion of Twin Rivers Adult School.  In some circumstances, Twin Rivers Adult School may accept equivalent coursework from unaccredited schools or high schools, if the rigor of the original course can be shown to be equivalent to that of the course at Twin Rivers Adult School, and the student can demonstrate current competency.  Courses that directly lead to certification or licensure, such as the Certified Nurse Assistant course, may be considered fulfilled by a student who holds a current valid certification or licensure.

Students should have their official transcripts from the other schools sent to Twin Rivers Adult School's Registrar Office.  Students must also fill out a petition for transfer of the courses.

Note: Students receiving Federal Student Aid at another school may only have that aid available at one school at a time, and if they wish to get a Pell Grant from Twin Rivers Adult School, then they need to transfer the aid to us.  See the Financial Aid Handbook for more details.

Students wishing to transfer to a different program within Twin Rivers Adult School should complete an Online Change of Enrollment Status Request Form.  The refund policy will apply to any unattended courses that are part of the program the student originally signed up for.  Students who have taken equivalent courses to what is required in their new program may transfer the courses to their new program as per our general transfer policy.

Unless specified by law or regulation, instructors have the prerogative in what grade is assigned to students.  Grading should attempt to be objective and equitable, using such tools as rubrics when possible.  But Twin Rivers Adult School recognizes that professional judgment on the part of the instructor is valid.

Students wishing to appeal a grade should first discuss their issue with the instructor.  Students may only appeal their grade to administration if sufficient evidence can be produced to demonstrate the instructor acted unfairly in the assignment of the grade.

Instructors, at their discretion, may assign work to students who are absent that is of equal rigor to in-class assignments, thus the students would be participating in distance education.   This may be assigned to students as a class for days instructors are in official business, such as professional development or meetings.  It may also be assigned to individual students who have a life situation that has extenuating circumstances requiring them to not be on-campus, but which would not generally count as an official excused absence (students with excused absences may also be allowed to do this at the instructors discretion). 

The total amount of time per section (course) a student could do distance learning must be less than 49% of the total length of the section.  Further, the total amount of distance learning must be less than the state quota allowed to adult education, and any other regulations that are required of us as a school.  All assignments that a student completes via this option or tests that they complete to prove their learning will be kept in the student’s permanent online record.

Twin Rivers Adult School Career and Technical Education (CTE) Courses follow industry standards, and students are expected to behave and perform in a manner as would be similar in their field of work.   As such, students are expected to maintain 90% attendance, and at least a 2.0 ("C") Grade Point Average (GPA).

Receiving a Warning

CTE Students who do not maintain both a 90% attendance and 2.0 GPA for a  6-week session, will be given a single warning, that their performance is not sufficient.   Students receiving a failing grade ("F") in a course, will need to repeat and repay for that course.

Involuntary Withdrawal for Insufficient Grades or Attendance

CTE Students who do not maintain both a 90% attendance and 2.0 GPA for two 6-week sessions, will be withdrawn from their program.  Students receiving Pell Grants will have a Return to Title IV Calculation, and based upon this calculation it will be determined whether the student may owe money to the school or the federal government, or in some cases, whether the student will receive funds from their Pell Grant, or a refund for classes not taken.

Appeal Process for Re-Enrollment

CTE Students who have been withdrawn from a program can NOT appeal the withdrawal, as they had already previously been warned.  But, students can appeal to be re-enrolled.  Students may be assessed additional fees for re-enrollment.  Students who re-enroll within 180 days of the time they were withdrawn, will not receive any additional Pell Grants.  Students who re-enroll after 180 days, may qualify for a new Pell Grant, depending upon which Award Year(s) they might qualify for and how much award has previously been used.

Twin Rivers Adult School schedules students in cohorts, where a group of students take the same set of classes at the same time.   Students who do not follow this preplanned schedule of courses for any of the following reasons, will need to have a Custom Schedule created for them:

• Students want to take the program less than full-time
• Students wish or need to retake a course in the program
• Students wish to take a break from their program
• Students wish to change programs

Twin Rivers Adult School will assess a $100 fee per custom schedule. Students receiving a custom schedule will be required to sign that they plan to attend all courses in the newly created schedule created for them.  Students may not have any gaps of more than one session (42 days) between courses in a custom schedule.

Students who wish to drop individual courses, and who are enrolled in a program are encouraged to talk with their instructor, admissions and/or financial aid office before making their decision.  Students should fill out an online Change of Enrollment Form to drop a class.  Withdrawing from one or more classes may not make their 90% attendance requirement, and have appropriate action taken. Students will owe for any classes that they have not requested a drop by the 3rd day of class. In addition students who repeat a class will owe for the additional class. (Students should refer to our Refund Policy for more details.)  Students will also need a custom schedule created to be able to make-up the missed course.

Students who have not attended a class for over one week, and have not made contact with their instructor, or admissions, may be automatically dropped from their course.   As an alternative to dropping classes, students may wish to request a Leave of Absence.

Students who are choosing to withdraw from an entire program, are encouraged to talk with their instructor(s) and the financial aid office (if receiving Pell Grants or other aid.) before withdrawing.  Students should fill out an online Change of Enrollment Form to withdraw from their program.  Students who have not attended their classes for over one week, and have not made contact with their instructor, or admissions, may be automatically dropped from their program as an unofficial withdrawal. Withdrawals are recognized as of the last school day of the week (generally Friday) that the student requested the withdrawal, or the student last attended.  Students receiving Pell Grants will go through the "Return to Title IV" (R2T4) process, which is the Federally mandated procedure for determining whether the student and/or school owes money to the Department of Education, or should receive a final disbursement.  (See the Financial Aid Handbook for more information about R2T4.)