College Credit Plus Student Spotlight: Tali Pinhas

When Tali Pinhas decided to take a full load of courses as a College Credit Plus student for her senior year with the Ohio Virtual Academy, she chose Ohio University Chillicothe for its proximity to her home.

This semester she is taking courses in geology, psychology, visual arts, and poetry and drama. Despite her full schedule, she still finds time to serve as president of the Anime Club at the Ohio Virtual Academy and she is also part of the National Honor Society.

“I've always been a high-achieving and ambitious student and I want to do what's best for me, and what's best for others,” said Pinhas. “I really wanted to focus on getting some of my college classes done while I'm in high school to get a head start. This year I decided to take College Credit Plus courses full-time.”

Pinhas has a few pieces of advice for other high school students considering College Credit Plus. She says time management is key and recommends reading the course syllabus before class starts and planning ahead for assignments and exams. Pinhas said programs and platforms like Trello, Quizlet, and notetaking software like OneNote are helpful tools for getting and staying organized, as well as preparing for tests.

She said taking College Credit Plus course at OHIO Chillicothe has not only helped prepare her for college, but also for life.

“I feel like it's really helped me because if I hadn't taken College Credit Plus courses, I wouldn't have felt as prepared to enter the adult world,” Pinhas said. “The courses that I'm taking now have helped me learn and apply time management skills, organizational skills, and communication skills. I've learned so much more than I would if I had just taken high school classes.”

Pinhas particularly enjoyed her writing and rhetoric class and her sociology class during the fall semester.

“I learned a lot in that class (sociology) because I've always been interested in those types of fields that deal with the inner workings of the mind and how we interact with others,” Pinhas said. “Those two classes in particular really enlightened me and showed me something that I wouldn't have seen otherwise.”