Dual enrollment policy has focused intensively on expanding access to college coursework for high school students, but far less attention has been paid to what enables students to succeed once they are enrolled. This creates an access–success paradox: the assumption that opening dual enrollment to students who do not typically participate in advanced coursework must necessarily result in declining success rates. This report examines how Oakland Unified School District challenges that assumption, drawing on more than 11 years of partnership with the Peralta Community College District to achieve an 83 percent average course pass rate among a student population composed predominantly of first-generation students, students from low-income backgrounds, and students of color.

At the center of OUSD’s approach is the point person model, a systematic framework for embedding wraparound support throughout the dual enrollment experience. Rather than treating student support as an add-on service, OUSD places a dedicated staff member in every dual enrollment classroom to monitor student progress, bridge communication between college instructors and school-based staff, and provide individualized intervention when students struggle. The report offers districts and states a concrete, operational answer to the access–success paradox: open access paired with intentional support infrastructure can produce strong outcomes for students who have historically been underserved by advanced coursework.