WCCC, Penn State Fayette enter agreement
A Westmoreland County Community College student with an associate degree in criminal justice can now move on to pursue a bachelor’s degree in administration of justice at Penn State Fayette with no concerns about whether his credits may transfer. The two institutions officially have joined forces with an articulation agreement between their related programs.
“We are fortunate on our campus to quite often celebrate what we consider historic events,” Penn State Fayette Campus Executive Officer Dr. Gregory Gray said during a press conference Wednesday to announce the agreement.
Gray said WCCC students, through this articulation agreement, will be able to transfer their criminal justice credits seamlessly to the Fayette Campus administration of justice (AOJ) program, which he noted was the first baccalaureate program to be offered at the local campus, about 12 to 13 years ago.
Gray said the WCCC students who continue their education at Penn State Fayette will benefit from instruction in forensic science and artificial intelligence, the campus Center for Community and Public Safety and a newly developed homeland security certificate.
WCCC President Dr. Daniel Krezenski said the proximity of Penn State Fayette is an attraction. He said many of the community college’s students are 29 to 30 years old and have families and jobs, “so we don’t have a lot of graduates who can run off to University Park or wherever.
“We’re very appreciative and we look forward to working together on other degrees,” he said.
Dr. Michael Mahalik, Penn State Fayette director of academic affairs, and Dr. Daniel Obara, WCCC vice president for academic affairs and student services, explained that WCCC criminal justice students could transfer before to Penn State’s AOJ program with some help, but now that transfer will be seamless for full credit, with the students knowing just what they need to take at the associate level to move on to the bachelor’s degree program. Obara said the agreement provides a structured framework between the two programs.
WCCC criminal justice graduates must have a cumulative 2.0 grade-point average and complete the Penn State admissions process, while advising will be available at both institutions to aid in the process. WCCC offers two associate degrees in criminal justice, one tailored to the student who plans to continue toward a four-year degree and one for those who want to enter the work force.
WCCC also offers certificates in security administration and corrections and a new certificate in information technology security, said Obara.
He said WCCC has articulation agreements with other local colleges and universities with other programs and criminal justice, and he, like Krezenski, mentioned working further with Penn State Fayette.
“We’re very proud of our program, and we think anyone who comes here to wrap up their baccalaureate degree is going to be very well served,” said Dr. Richard Ball, AOJ professor at Penn State Fayette and program chairman for the Commonwealth College.
Ball talked about the faculty members’ experience and said the AOJ program at Penn State Fayette is the “flagship” program for 12 campuses of Penn State’s Commonwealth College.
The program has advanced concentrations in forensics and security administration. Referring to the program as both student-oriented and community-oriented, he said interns have given 45,000 hours of service worth $250,000 to the community over the past five years.
Dr. Nathan Viswanathan, chemistry professor at Penn State Fayette, talked about the forensic science aspect of the program, two new courses that he said are the first of their kind in the Penn State system.
Forensic science I (AOJ 310) will be offered this fall semester, and forensic science II (AOJ 311) will be offered the spring 2004 semester. Both are three-credit courses. Viswanathan said the new courses emphasize hands-on activities, including fingerprint and footprint chemical techniques, drug tests, firearms and arson detection, infrared photography and voice identification.
Viswanathan said the long-term goals are to initiate forensic science as a minor or as an option to an AOJ degree and start a bachelor’s degree in forensic science if there is demand and support for the program.