Bard High School Early Colleges believe that intellectually curious high-school-age students, regardless of background, are capable of engaging with a college curriculum. BHSECs are public schools that offer students two years of an accelerated secondary education in the 9th and 10th grades, followed by two years of credit-bearing college classes in place of the traditional 11th and 12th grades. Students earn both a high school diploma and an Associate in Arts degree. In preparation for opening the first BHSEC in Baltimore for the 2015-2016 academic year, this grant enabled recruitment for BHSEC Baltimore’s first class of incoming 9th and 11th graders.