Thursday, October 01, 2015

[131] MTSU, Cleveland State sign agreement encouraging student success, easing transfer options

CHATTANOOGA — The presidents of Middle Tennessee State University and Cleveland State Community College signed agreements Tuesday (Sept. 29) to make it easier for community college students to transfer and successfully earn an advanced degree at the university.

MTSU’s Dr. Sidney A. McPhee and Cleveland State’s Dr. Bill Seymour authorized agreements creating dual admissions and reverse transfer options between the community college — with a main campus in Cleveland, Tennessee, and two satellite campuses — and MTSU, located in Murfreesboro.

The agreement signing occurred at the Chattanooga Convention Center, where the first leg of MTSU’s nine-city True Blue Tour was held later featuring a reception for prospective students and their guests and luncheon for area high school counselors and community college staff.

The agreement helps establish programs to promote successful experiences for students wanting to complete a degree. Cleveland State students can now interact with MTSU advisers and have access to faculty and programs within their proposed majors. Students completing an associate degree will be granted access to register early for university classes.


“This provides an opportunity to build an even stronger relationship with Cleveland State and our joint mission for student success so more Tennesseans graduate from college and support the state’s objective of producing a more educated workforce,” McPhee said. “We want there to be a smooth transition for students who transfer to MTSU from Cleveland State.”

“We are excited about this new partnership with MTSU,” stated Dr. Bill Seymour, Cleveland State President. “This program really is a win/win for both institutions, but more importantly it is a win/win for our students. They are the ones reaping the benefits from the opportunities that exist at both institutions.”

Another element of the agreements is reverse transfer.

A student completing MTSU courses can transfer those credits back to Cleveland State to help meet requirements for an associate degree. To learn more, students should email transfer@mtsu.edu or visit http://www.mtsu.edu/apply.

MTSU, the largest and oldest institution in the Tennessee Board of Regents system, also has established dual-admission programs with Nashville State, Chattanooga State, Dyersburg State, Motlow State, Jackson State, Roane State and Northeast State community colleges. It offers more than 150 programs including recording industry, Concrete Industry Management, aerospace, business and mechatronics engineering.

Cleveland State is a TBR college offering a wide variety of two-year degrees and one-year certificates. Many associate degrees are part of the Tennessee Transfer Pathways program, which guarantees graduates entry into select college and university programs as a junior. Specific areas of study include the humanities and social sciences, math and science, business and technology and health, wellness and nursing. The college serves Bradley, Meigs, McMinn, Monroe and Polk counties with campuses in Cleveland, Athens and Madisonville.

About MTSU

Founded in 1911 as one of three state normal schools for teacher training, MTSU is the oldest and largest public university in Middle Tennessee and in the Tennessee Board of Regents system with a fall enrollment averaging nearly 24,000 students for the past five years. A comprehensive university focused on student success, MTSU features eight undergraduate colleges and the College of Graduate Studies, and more than 150 programs and departments including accounting, aerospace, Concrete Industry Management, music and recording industry. A $147 million Science Building opened last fall and older Davis Science Building and Wiser-Patten Science Hall are undergoing $20 million renovations. State-of-the-art College of Education, Student Union and Student Services and Admission Center buildings opened in recent years. For more information, call 615-898-2300, visit http://mtsu.edu/ or follow on www.mtsunews.com or Twitter @MTSUNews.

About Cleveland State Community College 

Opening in 1967 in southeast Tennessee’s Bradley County, Cleveland State is an accredited public community college serving 5,000 students. Committed to quality education as a Tennessee Board of Regents institution, the college contains a diverse student body coming from all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Nearly 95 percent of the 70 full-time faculty members hold a master’s degree or higher. The 105-acre campus has 10 major buildings housing modern classrooms, laboratories and student activity centers. Additional features include an exceptional library, multimedia center, computer labs, 400-seat theater, 3,000-seat gymnasium, athletic fields tennis courts, reflector telescope and teleconference capabilities. Satellite campuses are located in Athens and Madisonville. Bradley, Meigs, McMinn, Monroe and Polk counties are served by the three campuses. For more information, visit http://www.clevelandstatecc.edu/, call 423-472-7141 or 800-604-2722 or follow on Twitter @clevelandstate.


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