College of the Mainland Collegiate High School graduated 88 students, 56 of whom have earned associate degrees.
College of the Mainland Collegiate High School graduated 88 students, 56 of whom have earned associate degrees.Collegiate High School student Dane Womack crossed the stage at graduation just as he took his classes – with his service dog, Daphne, by his side.

A total of 88 students – and one dog – graduated from College of the Mainland Collegiate High School this year, and 56 have earned associate degrees by high school graduation.

Collegiate High School student Dane Womack crossed the stage at graduation just as he took his classes – with his service dog, Daphne, by his side.

“She is a diabetic alert dog and she can alert me when my blood sugar goes too high or too low. She walked across the stage with me and attended all of my classes. I think she earned that degree and diploma as much as I did,” said Womack, who also graduated cum laude from Dickinson High School. “Eventually I want to be an agent in the FBI specializing in white collar crimes. CHS really helped me prepare for the stress and rigors of college life. It has also helped me by reducing the number of hours I will have to take at more expensive institutions like A&M.”

COM Collegiate High School allows students to take all academic classes at COM while remaining eligible for extracurricular activities at their high school. Students who begin the program as sophomores or juniors can earn their associate degrees before their high school diplomas.

Brandon Solis, of Dickinson, earned two associate degrees – one in general studies and one in teaching – plus a welding certificate. He plans to become a teacher.

“I want to help other students know more about how important it is to further their education besides just earning a high school diploma,” said Solis.

“COM helped me out a lot because it gave me the opportunity to take college classes as well as taking my high school classes and earn my associate’s degree before my high school diploma. Overall the staff at COM are very helpful and actually know what they're teaching so you learn a lot from them. 

Graduate Makenna Henderson, of Dickinson, graduated with a degree and has been accepted to Mays Business School at Texas A&M University in College Station.

“Attending Collegiate High School has been the best decision I have made in my life so far. Because I did Collegiate High School, I am going into A&M with an Associate of Arts degree and 79 college credits, saving my family somewhere near $50,000. Taking classes at COM has taught me to study, get along with others, be a leader despite being younger than everyone else, make friends with people of all ages and backgrounds, and to be myself. A&M is going to be hard, but I feel like CHS and COM has helped me be well prepared for any obstacles that come my way.”

Jade Vaughn, of Hitchcock, graduated with an associate degree in general studies and plans to major in psychology at Baylor University in the fall, with the goal of eventually becoming a psychiatrist.

“Taking college classes inspired me. CHS helped me learn what it was to be a college student, from figuring out how to coordinate my schedule to my benefit to learning how to take notes on a college level so that the information stuck with me,” said Vaughn. “My favorite thing about Collegiate High School would have to be the feeling that you are in control of your education, and that you're already doing something great with it by being in CHS. We're going the extra mile – it makes you proud of yourself and want to keep going.”

COM Collegiate High School is open to students from Clear Creek, Dickinson, Friendswood, Hitchcock, Santa Fe and Texas City ISDs and Odyssey Academy and home-schooled students. Students save time and money on higher education, and COM waives 40 percent of tuition and fees for CHS students.

For more information on COM Collegiate High School, visit www.com.edu/chs.