FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 28, 2004
CONTACT: Ginger Carnes, Palo Alto College Public Affairs
210.921.5269
PALO ALTO COLLEGE, TEXAS A&M-KINGSVILLE SYSTEM CENTER SIGN 2+2 IN TECHNICAL AREAS
Students who earn an Associate of Applied Science degree at Palo Alto College will be able to transfer those occupational-technical courses toward a bachelor’s degree at the Texas A&M University-Kingsville System Center-San Antonio.
Officials from both schools signed the ground-breaking agreement on July 28. The two institutions already have 2+2 agreements in arts and sciences areas that guarantee that specific courses will transfer to the senior university. The new agreement provides the same guarantee for students in occupational-technical areas.
The students will be candidates for a Bachelor of Applied Arts & Sciences (BAAS) degree from Texas A&M University-Kingsville with a Business Administration emphasis in a variety of concentrations, including Administrative Computer Technology, Agribusiness Management, Business Management, Computer Information Systems, Electro-Mechanical Technology, Landscape & Horticultural Science, Logistics Management, and Turfgrass & Golf Course Management.
Students will be able to transfer up to 88 credit hours of their degree – which includes the traditional 60 hours of an associate degree – toward a bachelor’s degree.
"This will give them a head start on their four-year degree. They won’t have to start over as freshmen," said Dr. Thomas B. Baynum, vice president of academic affairs at the community college. "In the past, many universities have not accepted technical course work toward a four-year degree because the Applied Science degrees are considered terminal degrees."
At the A&M campus, students will take only 36 hours in the upper-level business administration area to receive their bachelor’s degree.
"Texas A&M University-Kingsville awards the BAAS degree, which allows students to count technical courses, armed forces schools and non-collegiate instruction toward a degree," explained Dr. Garry Ross, executive director of the System Center. "We are pleased to give Palo Alto students more ways to achieve their bachelor’s degrees."
For more information about the new agreement, call the System Center at 921-5488. Current PAC students may contact Transfer Services at 921-5276.
The System Center provides junior- and senior-level classes on the Palo Alto College campus at I-410 and Hwy. 16 South. When it reaches the equivalent of 2,500 full-time students, it will be eligible to become a four-year university. Palo Alto, a community college that awards two-year associate degrees, has hosted the Center since 2000 and many of its students transfer to the local TAMUK campus and complete a bachelor’s degree.