March 13, 2001

STATE SYSTEM UNIVERSITIES TO PROVIDE SCHOLARSHIPS TO OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY COLLEGE GRADUATES

Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu

Outstanding graduates of Pennsylvania’s community colleges beginning this fall will have the opportunity to receive free tuition to complete their bachelor’s degrees at any of the 14 State System of Higher Education universities.
The Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges and the State System today announced a new two-year tuition scholarship program for community college students who make the All-Pennsylvania Academic Team, as selected by Phi Theta Kappa, an international honorary society for two-year colleges.
The team members will receive a Special Academic Passport, which will include a full tuition scholarship for students who transfer to a State System university within a year of having earned their associate degree. The scholarship will be renewable for up to two years, subject to the student continuing to meet the requirements of the scholarship award and of normal persistence toward graduation.
Students are selected to the All-Pennsylvania Academic Team on the basis of scholarship, leadership and community service. This year 32 Phi Theta Kappa nominees received the special recognition, which is awarded in conjunction with the Commission for Community Colleges. The students will be recognized at a special awards program next month.
“Today, we celebrate another step forward in encouraging a seamless relationship between community colleges and the State System universities,” said Community College Commission President James J. Linksz. “This step is also directly related to Gov. Ridge’s commitment to keeping the best Pennsylvania brains in the Commonwealth.”
Linksz, president of Bucks County Community College, said the Commission will continue to work with the State System to strengthen the tenets of the Academic Passport, which was created more than two years ago to help make it easier for community college graduate to transfer to State System universities.
“We are excited about our continuing partnership with the community colleges,” said State System Chancellor James H. McCormick. “This new scholarship program gives all of us another opportunity to recognize the truly outstanding graduates from each of these institutions.”
Students from each of Pennsylvania’s 15 community colleges are recognized each year by Phi Theta Kappa, which participates with USA Today in a national project to name the All-USA Academic Team.
“I have been struck by the high quality of students selected for the All-Pennsylvania Academic Team award,” said Steven Curtis, president of the Community College of Philadelphia, who worked with State System officials to develop the scholarship program. “I am confident that our associate degree students who transfer to State System universities will excel and contribute greatly to their universities.
“This is truly a winner for everyone involved. The students receive substantial scholarships while the community colleges and the State System universities have an opportunity to demonstrate the value of creating seamless higher education for Pennsylvanians.”
The State System’s Board of Governors approved the Academic Passport program in January 1999. It was designed not only to assure students who graduate with an associate degree from a community college in Pennsylvania admission to a State System university, but also to guarantee that most if not all of their credits will be accepted. The Passport seeks to ensure that students are able to complete their education without unnecessary repetition of coursework that has already been successfully completed.
An Academic Passport, which assures the holder entry into a State System university, is awarded to a student who earns either an associate of arts or associate of science degree from a community college in Pennsylvania or who has earned at least 12 credits at another System School.
In order to be eligible for a passport, a student must have a grade-point average of at least 2.0. Community college students must have earned at least 30 of their credits in liberal arts courses. System universities will accept up to 45 general education and liberal arts credits from a student who has earned an associate degree. Remedial, developmental or study skills courses will not transfer. Similarly, credits earned by taking occupational and vocational courses usually will not be accepted when a student transfer.
“The Academic Passport provides for a smooth transition from the two-year community colleges to our four-year universities,” said Mary W. Burger, State System vice chancellor for academic policy, planning and assessment.
To receive the Special Academic Passport, which includes the full-tuition scholarship, students must apply for other forms of financial assistance for which they may be eligible, including grants from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency. The scholarship will provide the amount of funds necessary to complete the tuition requirement once other forms of assistance are applied.
The community colleges are Bucks County Community College, Butler County Community College, Cambria County Area Community College, Community College of Allegheny County, Community College of Beaver County, Community College of Philadelphia, Delaware County Community College, Harrisburg Area Community College, Lehigh Carbon Community College, Luzerne County Community College, Montgomery County Community College, Northampton County Community College, Northwest Pennsylvania Technical Institute, Reading Area Community College and Westmoreland County Community College.
With more than 96,000 students, the State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth. Its 14 universities offer more than 250 degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. More than 360,000 System alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. The System also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Kittanning, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and the University Center for Southwest Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh. The regional centers are part of the Educational Resources Group, which is responsible for coordinating statewide programming.