NSU partners with CASC and KTC to increase bachelor's degrees

POTEAU Students at Carl Albert State College now can seamlessly transition into several four-year degree programs at Northeastern State University.

Dr. Brandon Webb, CASC president, and Dr. Don Betz, NSU president, will sign a partnership to establish a Smart Choice agreement between the two institutions. Signing ceremonies will be held on Monday, Nov. 29, at 1:30 p.m on the second-floor ballroom of the Costner-Balentine Student Center on the Carl Albert campus.

The Smart Choice agreement allows CASC students to pursue several bachelors degrees at NSU creating a seamless transition to four-year course work at NSU's Tahlequah, Broken Arrow or Muskogee campuses.

As a two-year college in southeastern Oklahoma, CASC is responsible for providing educational opportunities to communities very similar to those NSU serves in northeastern Oklahoma, said Dr. Martin Tadlock, NSU provost. Presidents Webb and Betz strongly believe in regional stewardship. Also, because they are part of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education system and serving the educational needs of Oklahoma citizens, CASC is a natural partner for NSU. We both are dedicated to maximizing access to quality higher education for people throughout eastern Oklahoma.

Designed to create greater access to four-year degrees, the Smart Choice agreement and Memorandum of Understanding will provide increased access to degree programs in the region and lead to an increased number of baccalaureate degree holders. This is a long-term objective of the OSRHE that can result in higher income for individuals and overall economic, social and cultural benefits for the state.

We highly value collaboration and will partner wherever possible to provide quality education to residents of Oklahoma, said Tadlock. Our mission speaks to that and so do our values as a university of the people. We can't meet the needs of Oklahomans living and working in the 21st Century without partnerships and collaboration. There aren't enough resources to meet those needs as a single institution. Technology allows us to collaborate easily and effectively, and partnering for the common good is what we are all about as public institutions.

The partnership plan provides course outlines for students majoring in the disciplines covered by both the Smart Choice agreement and the MOU.

NSU will also sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Kiamichi Technology Center, which will provide a site for delivery of the two degree completion programs. That signing will take place Nov. 29 at 10 a.m. on the KTC campus.

The Memorandum of Understanding with Kiamichi Technology Center will allow CASC students (and others with an associate's degree) to complete one of two bachelors degrees entirely on the KTC campus. Students can choose to pursue either criminal justice or human and family sciences. Class work will be provided through a traditional classroom setting and through distance learning.

Officials from all three institutions hope to raise the number of degrees available locally. CASC and NSU recruiters and advisers will use the four-year plans to help students make long-term academic decisions. An NSU representative will travel to the CASC campuses to provide transcript evaluations and assist students with enrollment and advisement into programs covered by the Smart Choice agreement or into the degree completion programs brought to KTC.

NSU also holds Smart Choice agreements with Tulsa Community College, Connors State College, Eastern Oklahoma State College and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College. The partnerships provide transfer students opportunities to ease the transition to pursue a bachelors degree at NSU.

More information can be found on the Smart Choice section of our website.