Southeast joins with 3 universities to offer bachelor's

Southeast Missouri State University has joined with Three Rivers College and two other universities to offer bachelor's degrees at Three Rivers' Poplar Bluff campus.

Southeast, with Central Methodist University and Hannibal-LaGrange University, will contribute $30,000 a year to create a new university center, plus $150 per course taught at Three Rivers' campus.

Officials from each university signed the agreement Monday, including Kenneth Dobbins, president of Southeast; Wesley Payne, president of Three Rivers; Anthony Allen, president of Hannibal-LaGrange; and Rita Gulstad, provost of Central Methodist.

"I think that we have, in the very recent past, had an excellent relationship with Wes Payne and his team in Poplar Bluff," Dobbins said. "He approached me, and it was a mutual decision that we need to offer four-year programs from a state university on their campus since we serve the same region."

Payne said the partnership will make an "invaluable, powerful impact" on students who want to earn a four-year degree, the Daily American Republic in Poplar Bluff reported.

The new center will provide staffing, faculty offices and other resources for bachelor's degree programs that will be offered by Southeast, Central Methodist and Hannibal-LaGrange.

Three Rivers is remodeling space in its main administration building so representatives from each university will be in the same area, Dobbins said. Each university also will share administrative staff.

"We're very pleased about the arrangement and being able to share not only space, but administrative support," Dobbins said.

The agreement is set to renew each year unless one of the four members gives at least a semester's notice they wish to dissolve the partnership.

"But one of the things you do when you start programs like this is you don't say at the end of the semester, 'We're leaving,'" Dobbins said. "You have to make sure students we're working with can, in fact, finish their degrees. It automatically will renew itself, but I really don't see that as a big issue."

Southeast currently works with Three Rivers, as well as Mineral Area College, to operate the Cape College Center, formerly the Cape Girardeau Partnership for Higher Education, at the Cape Girardeau School District's Career and Technology Center.

The college center provides Cape Girardeau area residents with community college-type services, including course work offered by Southeast and Three Rivers that is applicable to an Associate of Arts degree through Three Rivers.

Mineral Area is responsible for the technical portion of all Associate of Applied Science degree programs currently offered.

Dobbins said the Cape College Center partnership is going "very, very well," and the universities are looking forward to expansion of the Career and Technology Center that is being funded with a bond issue passed by the Cape Girardeau School District in April.

"Under Wes Payne's leadership, it's been a pleasure to work with Three Rivers," Dobbins said. "Working here in Cape Girardeau and with Mineral Area, it just seems to be a very positive thing for the university and the college, and also for our students and constituencies out in the region around Poplar Bluff."

Dobbins added the partnerships have provided options for students in both the Cape Girardeau and Poplar Bluff areas.

"Now they can go to Three Rivers and get an associate's degree and go on to work. They can get a four-year degree from Southeast or Hannibal-LaGrange or Central Methodist, or they can do a little bit of both," Dobbins said. "We're looking forward to putting programs there and having more graduates from the Poplar Bluff area."

Those interested in the bachelor's and master's degree programs available through the universities at Three Rivers locations may visit trcc.edu/academics/bachelors.php for a list of available programs and contact information.

klamb@semissourian.com

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