A recent collaboration between ULM and Louisiana Delta Community College has been made to ensure that students who transfer to ULM won’t have to retake any classes, according to President Nick Bruno.
The goal for higher education is to give more opportunities to citizens, Bruno said.
“These collaborations assure that the coursework transfers without that individual having to retake many courses,” said Bruno.
Bruno said this collaboration has been in development for some time so that the community college’s content matches that of the university.
Bruno said the college deans from ULM and from Delta worked together on this agreement in hopes that a better solution could be found.
“Our hope is that a student who starts at LDCC and a student who starts at ULM can have the equal opportunity to complete that four year degree in the most efficient and effective manner,” said Bruno.
Bruno said the collaboration between LDCC and ULM go farther back than some may imagine.
“As far back as the early 2000’s Delta was actually housed on our campus in Coenen Hall until their facility on Millhaven was built,” said Bruno. “The partnership between Delta and ULM goes back a long way.”
The decision to pursue a collaboration between the two schools for the business degree came about from Bruno’s recollection of a former ULM student.
“When I first arrived there was a student who came from Delta with an associate degree that had to retake a large number of hours,” said Bruno. “And it was simply because the courses just did not match.”
Bruno said more than a year has been spent working on this agreement to assure that students from LDCC have a smooth transition from a two to a four year institution.
Bruno also said the collaboration between ULM and Delta could potentially increase graduation rates.
“It will hopefully provide more individuals in the state with degrees because they can go to a community college and get an associate degree and move on to a four year school,” said Bruno.
Bruno said he is a huge fan of community colleges and students coming from Delta shouldn’t feel inferior in any way.
“I think they provide many students the opportunity to achieve academic and career goals,” said Bruno. “There’s a tendency for students to believe that a student who went to a community college may not have had the same level of accomplishments than if they had been in a four year school from the beginning.”
Bruno said he thinks the future is bright for community colleges and universities working together. He said he believes if taken seriously, major growth and progress in the world around us will be seen.
“By changing the economy and giving more people opportunities, we are going to improve the standard of living,” said Bruno.
Barbara Hanson, LDCC Chancellor said that the relationship between ULM and LDCC is a continuing underscore in the importance of educational collaboration.
“LDCC is honored to work with such a fine institution,” Hanson said.
