Students at the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges now have a new option for completing a four year degree. Tuesday the community college district announced a new partnership with Bellevue University, in Nebraska.
Bellevue Executive Vice President Jim Grotrian says the partnership goes beyond the more common articulation agreements that mainly relate to transferring credits.
"We actually have a full-time employee that Scott Community College has agreed to host right there on the campus to make herself available. To work side by side with the staff to introduce some of the availability of our academic programs, maybe even a masters program, to some of the graduates and members of the community."
Her title is "relationship manager" and duties will include advising, counseling, and acting as an enrollment specialist.
Grotrian says students from the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges would be welcome to finish their four-year degrees on campus in Nebraska, but it's more likely they'll stay in this area and take Bellevue classes online.
The university already has similar partnerships with three other community colleges in Iowa, and nearly 50, in 23 states, across the country.