WVU Parkersburg launching "Go to 4" Bachelor's Degree Program

March 4, 2009

WVU Parkersburg to offer bachelor’s degrees to state’s community colleges.

CONTACT: Dr. Rhonda Richards, executive dean of academic affairs, 304-424-8242.

"Go to 4" website

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

West Virginia University at Parkersburg is launching a new state-wide program, “Go to 4,” to encourage West Virginia residents to pursue a bachelor’s degree.

The Parkersburg campus has signed agreements with each of the state’s public community colleges to provide baccalaureate degree opportunities for students in the WV Community and Technical College system.

Students who have completed two-year associate degree programs at in-state public community colleges will be eligible to apply for four of the six bachelor’s degrees that WVU Parkersburg offers.

“West Virginia ranks nearly last in baccalaureate degree attainment and is experiencing significant shortages in teacher education and the applied sciences,” noted WVU Parkersburg President Marie Foster Gnage.

“By providing a regional community college pathway to baccalaureate degrees, WVU Parkersburg can further ensure opportunities for state students who desire to meet local workforce needs for training and education,” she said.

College officials note the collaborative program responds to state legislation enacted last summer which emphasized WVU Parkersburg’s role as a higher education center. WVU Parkersburg is the only state community college accredited to offer baccalaureate degrees.

WVU Parkersburg bachelor’s degrees in the “Go to 4” program include the Bachelor of Applied Science in Business Administration degree, a workforce baccalaureate designed primarily for Associate in Applied Science degree holders; the Bachelor of Applied Technology degree, a technical workforce degree designed for AAS or Associate of Science degree holders; the Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, a professional degree designed primarily for Associate of Arts degree holders, and the Bachelor of Arts in Multi-Disciplinary Studies, a professional degree designed for A.A. degree holders.

“These targeted degrees are included in the program because they meet the advanced training needs of the state in the areas of teacher education and the applied sciences,” said Rhonda Richards, WVU Parkersburg’s executive dean of academic affairs.

Through the “Go to 4” program, Dr. Richards said WVU Parkersburg is developing articulation agreements with each of the state’s community colleges that will: identify programs of study for the articulation of academic credit for these bachelor’s degree programs; develop seamless pathways for transferring students between the WVCTCS community colleges and WVU Parkersburg’s bachelor’s programs, and apply credit for general education taken as part of A.A., A.S. or AAS degrees toward the general education requirements of the baccalaureate degree.

Participating in the “Go to 4” program are Blue Ridge Community and Technical College, the Community and Technical College at West Virginia University Institute of Technology, Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College, Marshall Community and Technical College, New River Community and Technical College, Pierpont Community and Technical College, Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College, West Virginia Northern Community College, and West Virginia State Community and Technical College.

WVU Parkersburg also offers the Regents Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.

cd03/03/09

For additional information, contact:
Connie Dziagwa
WVU Parkersburg
Executive Director
Institutional Advancement
(304-424-8203)

WVU Parkersburg News Archive

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