ABOVE PHOTO: Sydney Herr, 17, of Prescott, will graduate from the Business Management program at Chippewa Valley Technical College with an associate degree a semester before graduating from Prescott High School.
“So, right now I’m just like a full-time college student in high school…”
Sydney Herr admits she didn’t know what she was getting into four years ago.
The Prescott High School senior applied for and was chosen as one of two students in her district to enter the Chippewa Valley Technical College Business Management High School Academy.
The self-proclaimed Type A personality knew it would be a great experience and a way to earn a college degree. She said that’s all she needed to know to make the decision to take the remote CVTC classes that started her freshman year of high school.
On Thursday, Dec. 12, Herr will graduate from CVTC with an associate degree in Business Management a full semester before she graduates from high school.
“I’m not quite sure why I took it on,” Herr said with a laugh. “But I’m so glad I did it.”
Herr, 17, is done with all of her high school classes and is finishing up her CVTC classes in anticipation of graduation. She’s also taking a few classes at UW-River Falls.
“So, right now I’m just like a full-time college student in high school,” she said.
Next semester, she plans to take additional university classes like calculus, chemistry and environmental studies.
Herr talks about her college studies as if attending two colleges during high school is typical. She also is dismissive of her innate drive.
“I just always want to be better,” she said as a matter of fact. “I try to live one day at a time and make tomorrow better than today. I take what I’ve learned and all the failures that I have and just use those as momentum to keep going and just be better. I like thriving for perfection.”
On the horizon, Herr sees herself leaving Wisconsin for warmer weather to attend a university in something related to science – specifically chemistry.
She’s also considering entering the U.S. Navy. She has family who were in the Navy. She said that branch of the military aligns best with her “beliefs and lifestyle.”
Ultimately, she would love to work with genetics, DNA and characteristics passed down from generation to generation. She would like to help find a cure for diseases.
She said the classes she has taken at CVTC have given her greater experience in soft skills like writing and communication. For that, and the degree she’s about to receive, she is thankful.
“I absolutely loved the Business Management program because it’s a stepping stool,” she said. “These classes have helped me write better essays and it has helped me be able to communicate with my teachers better. I learned so much through this program that I don’t know where I’d be if I hadn’t done it.”
