SUNY Empire State College, Rio Salado College forge academic agreement
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » SUNY Empire State College and Rio Salado College, a member of the Maricopa Community College District in Tempe, Arizona, recently finalized a transfer agreement highlighting four academic programs to help graduates who have earned an associate degree transfer to continue their education.
The partnership agreement allows Rio Salado students to transfer up to 79 lower-division credits to SUNY Empire, more than half the 124 total credits required to complete a bachelor’s degree. This allows students to earn a bachelor’s degree in as little as one year after their associate degree, and then enter the workforce even sooner.
As part of the agreement, SUNY Empire will guarantee admission to a bachelor’s degree program, waive the orientation fee for incoming students, provide a $100 scholarship upon acceptance, and will offer Rio Salado graduates affordable SUNY tuition rates.
All programs can be completed entirely online to fit the busy lives of working professionals. Students will also benefit from SUNY Empire’s prior learning assessment process, which awards college credit for work and life experience, reducing the overall cost and time needed to complete a degree.
The four programs highlighted in the pathways transfer agreement include:
• Addictions and Substance Use Disorders (A.A.S.) to Addiction Studies (B.S.)
• General Business (A.A.S.) to Business Administration (B.S.)
• IT: Database Development (A.A.S.) and IT: Programming and Systems Analysis Level I (A.A.S) to Science, Mathematics & Technology with a concentration in Information Technology (B.S.)
• Associate in Arts: Emphasis in Psychology (A.A.) to Psychology (B.A.)
“SUNY Empire State College prides itself on being a longstanding leader in delivering flexible education opportunities online, and this new partnership will help countless students achieve their dreams, no matter where they call home,” SUNY Empire Officer in Charge Nathan Gonyea stated.
“Rio Salado graduates are uniquely prepared, given their familiarity and success with remote learning platforms. We look forward to welcoming Rio Salado alumni to SUNY Empire,” Gonyea explained.
“There is an extraordinary amount of synergy between SUNY Empire State College and Rio Salado College,” Rio Salado College Interim President Kate Smith noted.
“SUNY Empire was founded in 1971 to break the mold of higher education. Rio Salado was founded in 1978 as the college without walls. We both began our journey to reshape education by increasing access to post-secondary learning for nontraditional students in our local communities. Today, we stand together as online educational leaders who can help shape the future of our country and online higher learning. This partnership reflects our commitment to providing pathways to social and economic mobility for all. Today we are proud to offer four new educational pathways in high-demand fields to help students increase their opportunities for finding gainful employment, while helping employers find qualified applicants,” Smith noted.
One of the four transfer degrees highlighted during a virtual agreement signing event was SUNY Empire’s online Bachelor of Science in Addiction Studies program. SUNY Empire’s program, designed to help combat all forms of addiction and substance misuse by helping to meet the growing demand for professionally trained counselors, prepares students to become skilled addiction treatment specialists.
The opioid crisis continues to strain critical services, creating an increased need for substance abuse counselors. Experts across the country are reporting increased episodes of relapse, and a rise in overdoses, due to COVID-19-related uncertainties. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports an average of 130 Americans die every day as the result of an overdose.
SUNY Empire’s program is structured around courses that address fundamental aspects of how addiction affects individuals, families, and communities, while examining the assessment, treatment, and prevention of substance abuse.
“SUNY Empire’s program provides a comprehensive overview of the knowledge students will need when they go out to work in the field of addiction,” SUNY Empire Associate Professor Thalia MacMillan remarked.
“It has the potential to incorporate their experiences. The nice thing about the partnership between SUNY Empire and Rio Salado is that all the credits students have earned do transfer in. We’ll use what they did and learned there and continue to build off that rock-solid foundation,” MacMillan explained.
“I believe it’s important in today’s world for students to continue their work toward earning a bachelor’s degree and I encourage those who are going to work in this field long term to eventually get a master’s degree,” Rio Salado College Chair of the Addiction and Substance Use Disorders Kirk Bowden, added.