Administrators from Penn State and the Community College of Beaver County (CCBC) have signed a comprehensive agreement to facilitate the transfer of CCBC students into nine baccalaureate degree programs at 14 Penn State campuses, including Penn State Beaver. The agreement is effective this fall and was announced by Donna J. Kuga, Penn State Beaver’s interim chancellor, and Chris Reber, CCBC president, at a recent meeting at CCBC.
“The articulation agreement reflects our shared priorities of enhancing access and affordability to higher education. Our institutions have worked together before and this project will significantly strengthen our relationship to benefit students in our shared region,” Kuga and Reber said.
The growing partnership between CCBC and Penn State Beaver will benefit students and both institutions. CCBC students will be encouraged to complete their degrees in order to seamlessly transfer all earned credits, while Penn State will realize an increase in students who are academically prepared, potentially leading to increased degree completion rates at both institutions.
Through the agreements, students who earn their associate degree at CCBC will be provided an academic pathway to transfer into a parallel bachelor’s degree program at Penn State Beaver. The coordination of transferable coursework, supported through academic advising, will support the successful transition for students.
CCBC graduates can now apply to enter Penn State Beaver’s bachelor of arts and bachelor of science in administration of justice, bachelor of science in business, bachelor of arts in communications, and bachelor of arts and bachelor of science in psychology.
In addition, CCBC students may also apply for transfer into four-year degree programs in English; human development and family studies; and letters, arts and sciences, which are programs not offered at Penn State Beaver but are available at 13 other Penn State campuses: Brandywine, DuBois, Fayette, Greater Allegheny, Hazleton, Lehigh Valley, Mont Alto, New Kensington, Schuylkill, Shenango, Wilkes-Barre, Worthington Scranton and York).
The agreement also allows specific program-to-program articulation for the bachelor of science in organizational leadership authorized for delivery at Penn State New Kensington by the College of The Liberal Arts, and the registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing degree authorized for delivery by the College of Nursing at Penn State Fayette, New Kensington and Shenango.
“With each new agreement, we are moving away from the traditional model of viewing neighboring colleges and universities as competition,” Reber said. “Instead, we are developing partnerships with four-year institutions like Penn State so students in our community have more and enhanced educational opportunities.”
When transferring to Penn State, CCBC students must apply for admission, submit required transcripts and meet Penn State’s admission requirements. Penn State application fees will be waived for CCBC students who apply for one of these baccalaureate programs.
“It’s a great step forward in helping all of our students reach their academic goals, whether it’s here in Beaver County or elsewhere across the commonwealth,” said Kuga and Reber.
Both leaders stepped into their current positions July 1 following the retirements of Penn State Beaver Chancellor Gary Keefer and CCBC President Joe Forrester. A search for a permanent chancellor at Penn State Beaver is underway.