Dr. James Perkins, president of Blue Ridge Community College, and Dr. Beryl H. Brubaker, interim president of Eastern Mennonite University, signing the guaranteed admissions agreement.Photo by Jim Bishop
Eastern Mennonite University and Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave have taken steps to become closer partners in higher education for the broader community.
EMU interim president Beryl H. Brubaker and BRCC president James Perkins signed a “guaranteed admission agreement” Thursday, Dec. 18. The agreement will take effect for new Blue Ridge students with the start of the second (spring) semester Jan. 5, 2004.
“This new policy means that new BRCC students who have satisfactorily completed the associate in arts and sciences degree will have met lower-level general education course requirements at EMU and is understood to grant them admission with ‘junior’ class standing,” Dr. Brubaker said.
The agreement notes, however, that admission into certain programs at EMU is competitive and will require program acceptance. Any BRCC transfer student will need to meet EMU’s general admissions and graduation requirements.
BRCC, one of 23 community colleges in the Commonwealth of Virginia, has the highest rate of graduates who transfer to four-year colleges. Blue Ridge graduates have strong local ties and many desire to stay in the community to complete their college education.
“Blue Ridge has had a good partnership with EMU over the years,” Dr. Perkins said. “This agreement will provide a clear path from the outset for our students to move right into completing a four-year degree at a respected private institution in this same area.”
EMU is one of 25 members of the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV). On Dec. 10, 2003, CIVC presented Virginia governor Mark Warner with a briefing using data from the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia (SCHEV) to demonstrate the ability of Virginia’s private colleges and universities to enroll additional students.
“SCHEV has estimated that an additional 61,000 students will enroll in statewide colleges and universities by the year 2010,” said Shirley B. Yoder, vice president for enrollment and marketing at EMU. “The gap between supply of Virginia’s educational capacity and future demand is becoming a focus of attention for policymakers.
“The CICV report to the governor also noted that private colleges’ capacity could conceivably be sufficient to address additional transfer demand from Virginia’s community colleges,” Yoder added. “This agreement moves us even closer to that reality.”
More information on the EMU-BRCC transfer agreement is available from Shirley B. Yoder at 540-432-4159; e-mail: yodshirb@emu.edu.