Successful early college high schools (ECHSs) are formed through partnerships between high schools and colleges (usually community colleges). Think of it as preparation through acceleration. ECHSs enroll disadvantaged students who have not excelled with ordinary grade-level academic content and have them take college courses while still in high school. It is not easy--and it does not always work. But successful ECHSs support their students in five ways: (1) Instead of relying on student choice, ECHSs show students what content and skills they need for college and provide a "package-deal curriculum" that leads to mastery of that content and those skills; (2) Instead of assuming students are motivated, ECHSs "foster motivation" by offering incentives and bolstering students' confidence; (3) Instead of student-initiated guidance, ECHSs "keep students on track" by providing frequent mandatory guidance and closely monitoring students' progress; (4) Instead of a student-initiated college search, ECHSs "manage the transition" from high school to college; and (5) Instead of assuming that students have study skills, ECHSs explicitly "teach study skills". Like other education reforms, ECHSs have often been presented as a sure-fire way to boost student achievement. After all, these schools seem to offer a simple solution: just incorporate college courses into high school. In this article, the authors take a close look at each of the five features of successful ECHSs and show how the reality of these schools is much more complex. (Contains 3 footnotes and 66 endnotes.)