NEWS

Louisiana Tech, SouthArk partner to serve needs of transfer students

Nov 29, 2011 | General News

Louisiana Tech University and South Arkansas Community College (SouthArk) have entered into an educational partnership agreement to provide undergraduate opportunities and transfer and advising support for students who may attend both institutions.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed Tuesday afternoon by Louisiana Tech President Dan Reneau and South Arkansas Community College President Barbara Jones.  The agreement ensures that each institution serves the needs of students by providing them with appropriate and accurate transfer and advising information.

From left (seated): Dr. Barbara Jones, President-South Arkansas Community College, Dr. Dan Reneau, President-Louisiana Tech University. From left (standing): Dr. Ken Rea, Dr. Jo Ann Dauzat, Dr. Val Cantu, Dr. Curtis Hill, Dr. Don Kaczvinsky, Dr. Terry McConathy.


“This partnership with South Arkansas Community College will help Louisiana Tech to continue recruiting and graduating the best and brightest students our region has to offer,” said Reneau.  “Our community college partners are essential to helping our students build a solid foundation for furthering their educational careers while contributing to a stronger and more highly-skilled workforce for our entire region.”
The agreement also demonstrates the commitment of both institutions to create a seamless and efficient transfer system that will help students to successfully achieve their academic goals.
“Louisiana Tech University is one of the top three transfer universities for SouthArk graduates,” said Jones.  “This articulation agreement will enable SouthArk students and graduates to more readily transfer and expedite completion of their academic goals. The agreement eliminates barriers to transfer and creates bridges for students through accurate and timely advising.”
We believe this agreement will also build and strengthen the college and university partnership for future collaborative educational, grant, or economic development opportunities which can benefit our region.”
Specifics of the agreement include developing an Expanded Course Articulation (Transfer) Guide, identifying high-interest degree programs at each institution and faculty members who will coordinate and serve as advisors for students transferring into designated programs.  It also seeks to improve collegiality and communication among college and university faculty and administrators, and outlines transfer student scholarship opportunities.
“The most significant benefit of this agreement for students is that it will help ensure the shortest time to graduation by providing a roadmap of degree requirements and course equivalencies between our institutions,” said Pamela Ford, dean of enrollment management at Louisiana Tech.  “Students who follow this roadmap will be able to graduate with an associate’s degree in two years and a bachelor’s degree in four years.”
Louisiana Tech’s fall 2011 enrollment was 11,581 with 423 classified as transfer students – an increase of 11.4 percent over fall 2010.  The 2011 freshman class was Tech’s largest since 2006 and the average freshman ACT score, at 23.81, was the highest in the university’s history.