Cat Crutchfield wasn’t nervous about taking courses at Montgomery County Community College when she registered at 16 years old.

“I come from a background where I’ve been around college my whole life,” she said. “My mom is a professor. College was not a scary prospect. I feel like students have this idea of a foreboding, formal thing about taking classes with a professor, but a professor is just a regular person. Having that background helped me to get used to the concept of being at Montco. It’s not so different from going to a typical high school five days a week.”

Today, the now 18-year-old from Chestnut Hill, received an associate’s degree in Liberal Studies during the 58^th Commencement ceremony on May 15 as a High School Dual Enrollment student, followed by her high school diploma a week later. This fall, she’s transferring to four-year transfer partner Temple University’s Honors Program to study English.

Crutchfield, who fulfilled her high school credits at MCCC as a full-time student throughout her junior and senior years, said that her decision to attend MCCC through its High School Dual Enrollment program made a positive impact on her education.

“I started at a typical high school, but I didn’t like it that much,” she said. “Eventually the principal at my school recommended I go to Montco.”

“A typical high school may not have had the opportunities like I had to push myself here at Montco, like taking such diverse types of classes,” she continued. “I’m happy about managing to be so accomplished and excited to see what the future holds for me at Temple.”

The High School Dual Enrollment program allows students to get a head start on their college education while completing high school. Students can take courses at their high school, at MCCC, or online. Students can finish their degree at MCCC, transfer their credits to a four-year college or university, or complete their bachelor's or master's degree through one of MCCC’s partner schools.

Thinking about her first days on campus, Crutchfield said she felt a range of emotions. Walking onto the Blue Bell Campus for her First Year Experience (an introductory course for students to become familiar with college resources, culture, policies and technology) and public speaking courses wasn’t an unusual experience for her, but she remembered looking forward to rolling up her sleeves and getting to work.

“I was excited to get into class,” she said. “FYE was helpful since I was new to campus to get a lay of the land.”

Crutchfield also wasn’t nervous about being one of the youngest students in her classes.

“It wasn’t odd,” she said. “I’ve been lucky to have some other Dual Enrollment students in my classes. Traditional students were college freshman age, so there wasn’t that big of an age difference. It wasn’t much of a hurdle to get used to.”

Crutchfield studied on campus five days a week, starting the first of her two or three classes a day at 9 a.m. and working until around 3 or 4 p.m. most days.

“It was basically like a typical school schedule,” she said.

As a student, Crutchfield tried to get involved with as many extracurricular activities on campus as she could. She was a member of the International Club, which celebrates the cultures of students from around the world. She volunteered at the annual International Night and took part in other events and activities related to the club. She was a member of the Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for two-year colleges, and was active in the Honors Club, serving as its vice-president. She was also a member of the Art and Literature Club and won the 2025 Patricia Nestler Creative Writing Award for Fiction. 

As a visual artist and writer, Crutchfield published her work in MCCC’s Art and Literature Magazine, which features a collection of student artwork and poetry, representing a full range of mediums. The publication shows the full scope of artistic and literary talent coming from students in MCCC’s Fine Arts Program and English Department. Crutchfield first submitted two short stories to the publication in 2024. For the 2025 edition, she submitted a short story from her creative writing class called “Dust Bunny,” as well as a comic strip she drew for the class where the assignment was to tell an open-ended story using pictures. Her work drew praise from English and Fine Arts faculty, who recommended to the editors of the magazine that they include her work.

Crutchfield said being published in the magazine each year was a big achievement for her.

“I was very excited both times. I was very happy with the work,” she said. “This year was more noteworthy because I was involved in creating the magazine as a member of the Art and Literature Club.”

In the days leading up to the Commencement, Crutchfield said she was excited to graduate.

“I’ve taken a majority of the classes I’m interested in,” she said. “I’ve been able to meet people and do a lot of things. I am proud to get an associate’s degree.”

With her degree in hand, she’s ready to turn the page on her time as a Mustang. Before that though, Crutchfield said she wanted to leave behind a message for those interested in following in her footsteps as a Dual Enrollment student.

“The advice I would give to students is college isn’t scary,” she said. “You get used to it pretty quickly. Take opportunities to meet people and try to get involved with other students and groups on campus.” 

For more information about the High School Dual Enrollment program, visit the Dual Enrollment landing page or email the program.

Listen to Cat Crutchfield's interview on the "Montco on the Move" podcast.