By Jim Bloch
Looking to save some money, stay close to home and earn a bachelor’s degree?
St. Clair County Community College and Saginaw Vally State University have signed a memo of understanding to offer four-year degrees on the Port Huron campus of the community college. SC4 students who want to transfer to SVSU will receive automatic admission.
“This initiative is about removing barriers and expanding opportunity,” said SC4 President Kirk Kramer in an April 9 press release. “Our organizations share a common vision of helping all students prepare for high demand careers. By bringing SVSU programs to the SC4 campus, students can earn advanced degrees close to home, saving time and money while staying connected to their community.”
The two institutions also signed a Concurrent Pathway Agreement for students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. The agreement will provide SC4 nursing students with a streamlined, coordinated route to complete their BSN at SVSU.
“The memo of understanding establishes a framework for growing academic collaboration, including the development of new degree pathways aligned with regional workforce demands,” the college said in its release.
The college and university are in the process of determining the programs, including masters’ level classes, to be offered. The college is hoping to launch the programs in Port Huron as early as this fall.
“Expanding educational offerings, degree pathways, internship experiences and more is good for our students, good for our communities, good for our employers and good for our state,” said George Grant Jr, president of SVSU, in a statement. “Like SC4, we believe that students should be challenged in the classroom – we want them prepared in their career fields – but we want to remove confusion in other areas so students can focus on learning. These agreements are an important step in that direction and will help students build their careers to meet the workforce needs our employers face every day.”
The collaboration is in line with Michigan’s Sixty-by-30 goal to boost the percentage of adults with a postsecondary degree or skills certificate to 60 by 2030.
Now, just over 51 percent of Michiganders have post-high school degrees or skills certificates.
“This is a big deal,” said Jim Soto, professor of philosophy and English at SC4, in a Facebook post. “I’m pretty excited about it. To give a little inside baseball, our department will have to make a couple of tweaks to our courses and course offerings, but nothing major.”
Michigan ranks 37th in the nation in education attainment.
“By combining SC4’s more than 100-year history in providing accessible, high-quality education with SVSU’s robust upper-division and graduate programs, the endeavor represents a powerful investment in the future of the region,” the college said.
It turns out that citizens with post-high school degrees make more money than those without them; have higher rates of employment; receive more benefits from their employers; vote more regularly; volunteer in higher numbers in their communities; and even exercise more often.
“For students throughout the Thumb and beyond, the message is clear,” said the college. “Four-year degrees and advanced educational opportunities are coming to Port Huron, opening the door to a brighter future, right at home.”
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer based in St. Clair, Michigan. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
