Colleges were primarily developed at Bard College at Simon's Rock, the oldest early college entrance program and only accredited four-year early college to date. BHSEC Manhattan was the first school in the Gates Foundation's Early College High School Initiative, which aims to improve education, in the United States, by introducing smaller public high schools which help remove the barriers to a college education by offering students a college education in a high school setting. As of June 2016, over 2,500 A.A. degrees have been awarded across all BHSEC campuses. The schools boast a 98% high school graduation rate and a 95% A.A. degree attainment rate. Many graduates of BHSEC transfer their 60+ college credits to another college or university and finish their Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in two more years; others opt to study for three or four years in their subsequent institutions. According to the National Student Clearinghouse, the six-year B.A. attainment rate for the classes of 2005-2009 was 98%. School structure High school (9th & 10th grades) In the BHSEC program, students spend what is traditionally ninth and tenth grade finishing the bulk of their high school work. Students are encouraged to take all required state testing by the end of 10th grade, when possible – in New York City, students take the five Regents exams required for the High School Regents diploma, which they receive in addition to the Associates of Arts degree from Bard College. Unlike most public high schools, however, BHSEC does not offer courses tailored to prepare students for state tests, nor are there any Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses offered (as the last two years are already spent in an accredited college program). In order to complete the high school curriculum in two years, courses are taught at an accelerated pace. BHSEC does not rank its students and does not honor titles such as Valedictorian, nor does it implement a Dean's list. Early College Program (11th & 12th grades) The two years spent, in the college program, are denoted "Year 1" and "Year 2." As a college program, students may select their courses based primarily on their academic interests and preferences for certain professors; however, they must also meet the college program's core requirements. These requirements include four semesters of the Bard Seminar, in which students read and discuss seminal works of western thought, from Plato and the classics