By Kayla Tucker – Managing Editor
A formal agreement was made this morning between Grand Rapids Community College and Western Michigan University to make the transfer process more seamless for students.
Following the introduction of GRCC President Steven Ender and WMU President John Dunn the formal agreement was passed and signed, making the transfer pathways public and official.
The college presidents were accompanied by GRCC Provost Laurie Chesley and WMU Provost Timothy Greene.
For the first time, students can now see what classes are required of them at GRCC in order to transfer to WMU for specific major programs. Information about these academic programs will be in the GRCC catalog and are eligible for financial aid.
GRCC has similar agreements with Ferris State University and Davenport University, like their “3+1” degree programs for computer information systems and business administration.
While there are already working degree programs in place between the colleges, such as music, this agreement now gives counseling faculty even more flexibility in creating degree programs directly with WMU.
This fall 101 new transfer students from GRCC enrolled at Western.
Dunn said that the top priority with this agreement is to “reduce institutional barriers” with the students’ best interests in mind.
“The most important individuals are the students that we serve,” Dunn said. “(Now) we can say to students clearly that if you do these things, then there are no potential barriers you have to worry about.”
