SFCC, UNM Announce Streamlined, Increased Degree Options for Santa Feans

From a Santa Fe Community College press release...

On August 23, SFCC Pres­i­dent Sheila Ortego and UNM Pres­i­dent Bob Frank signed a Mem­o­ran­dum of Agree­ment tostreamline the process for students who want to earn a four year degree without leaving Santa Fe through the Santa Fe Higher Edu­ca­tion Cen­ter.

“We are pleased to announce that Santa Fe stu­dents looking to go directly from completing their associate degree at SFCC to continuing on with their education now have more options,” Dr. Ortego said. “Our students can talk to UNM advis­ers about courses of study, financial aid, tak­ing courses online or designing their aca­d­e­mic degree plan – right here on campus.”

According to the agreement, UNM will offer courses through its Extended Uni­ver­sity. UNM students will benefit from facil­i­ties, ser­vices and resources through the Higher Education Center. The center will pro­vide com­puter lab­o­ra­to­ries and library facil­i­ties as well as test­ing and tutor­ing ser­vices at no cost to stu­dents. UNM will continue to have an office on site.

“Community colleges are gateways to four-year institutions, said Dr. Frank. “Increasing student demand for programs and services, in addition to economic demands for a highly trained workforce, has created an urgent need for us to increase access for our citizens to higher levels of educational attainment.”

The agreement will enable students to leverage the resources of both institutions though a dual admissions process, known as “two-plus-two.” With this approach, students’ educational experiences should include a seamless transition from associatedegree programs to baccalaureate degree programs. Through the Higher Education Center, students are assured of acceptance of prior college courses at SFCC and are offered a plan for completing a baccalaureate degree at UNM as efficiently as possible.

“Our com­mu­nity wants UNM degree pro­grams to be made available right here in Santa Fe,” said Tina Ludut­sky Tay­lor, the direc­tor of the Higher Edu­ca­tion Cen­ter. “With easily accessible and appro­pri­ate advise­ment, stu­dents can iden­tify a preferred degree pro­gram tailored to their interests early on and com­plete an associate degree and a bachelor’s degree in the most eco­nom­i­cal way.”

Ludut­sky Tay­lor said that stream­lin­ing the edu­ca­tional process for New Mex­ico stu­dents is beneficial to students, the community and the economy. The Higher EducationCenter provides the opportunity for more New Mexicans to complete their degree(s) more quickly, at lower cost and prepared to enter the workforce.

The agreement formalizes the Extended University relationship through which UNM offers bachelor’s and master’s degree completion programs via online, as well as a Masters in Public Administration offered through interactive television. The next step is to estab­lish theagree­ments between UNM’s and SFCC’s courses and degree pro­grams.

UNM Vice Provost of Extended Uni­ver­sity Jerry Dominguez was instru­men­tal in devel­op­ing the agreement. He doesn’t want to stop at under­grad­u­ate degrees. “We also want to provide opportunities for students to receive advanced degrees that include engineering and the health sciences field,” he said.