Course Descriptions

VEC High School Courses

Below are descriptions of the high school courses that VEC students will be required to take along side their Pima Community College courses during their year with the Vail Early College. These classes are taught on the campus of Pima College East by a Vail School District teacher.

American Government – This year long course focuses on America’s democratic principles, values, and practices. Students will demonstrate the ability to distinguish interactions among branches of government, describe how the Constitution and history has shaped our political system, as well as demonstrate an understanding of civic duty and participation.

College Success – College Success is a comprehensive year long course designed to help students create success in college and in life. In this course, students will learn strategies for creating greater academic, professional, and personal success. Students will explore their skills, values and interests through the use of career interest inventories to guide their choices along the way. The most important part of this course, however, is for students to learn more about empowering themselves…learning who they are as a student and learning what it takes to keep themselves balanced and on course to success. This course is also a dual enrollment course and will earn students credit for Pima’s STU 100 course.

Senior Exit Project – Vail Early College Students are required to complete a Senior Exit Project, as it is a graduation requirement in the Vail School District. The VEC has its own SEP guidelines that differ from their high school of graduation but will meet the same requirements. Much of the work for the SEP will be completed during the College Success course but there will be work outside of school hours.

College Courses 

All other courses students take in the VEC are Pima courses and will vary based on students academic plan. Exact classes offered at Pima East can vary from semester to semester. For Pima Community College East Campus course offerings and Pima course descriptions, please visit Pima's website. NOTE: Classes VEC students take are located at Pima's East campus. Pima has multiple campuses, so there are Pima courses that are not available to the VEC student.