May 8, 2007

Cowley, Southwestern sign degree agreement

A new agreement between Southwestern College and Cowley College will help graduates working in the emergency medical field transition into management.

“We hope this will become a good example of how our two institutions can work together to provide quality education not only in Cowley County but throughout the region and the world,” says Southwestern President Dick Merriman.

The plan allows graduates of Cowley’s EMS Leadership program to enroll at Southwestern with up to 64 credit hours accepted in transfer from this degree. This credit would then be applied to any of SC’s online bachelor’s degree completion programs, with graduation possible within 18 months. The associate of general studies degree in EMS Leadership is Cowley’s first program that can be completed totally online.

“The EMS profession is really in its infancy and we all believe that this partnership will positively affect personnel and organizations globally. We look forward to more partnerships with our schools,” says Cowley allied health department chair Slade Griffiths.

The EMS degree is appropriate for continuation in several SC online completion programs, says Mary Bulla, director of organizational partnerships at Southwestern College’s Professional Studies. She suggests the Cowley graduates explore Bachelor of Science options in business quality management, human resource management, or operations management.

“I am delighted that our two sister institutions in Cowley County have partnered together in this articulation agreement. Partnerships in education like this are immensely beneficial to our students,” says Cowley College President Pat McAtee.

Online classes begin in August for the EMS Leadership classes at Cowley and for the bachelor’s degree completion program at SC.

“There already has been a high degree of interest in this program, and classes are expected to fill completely,” Bulla adds.

For more information, contact Bulla at (316) 684-5335, or Griffiths at Cowley College, (620) 441-6584.