Photo courtesy of Mike Peters
Montclair State University and County College of Morris (CCM) reinforced their relationship last month with an automatic credit-transfer agreement, which will give the nearly 200 students who transfer from CCM to Montclair State each year a more seamless transition.
According to President Susan Cole in a press release, “This partnership expands on a long and successful transfer relationship between the two institutions.” It ensures a four-year graduation path for those pursuing an Associate of Arts or Associate of Sciences at CCM and planning to obtain their bachelor’s at Montclair State.
In addition to the two-plus-two model created by this new initiative, the two institutions also plan to share resources. Representatives from Montclair State will regularly visit CCM to provide academic advising and workshops for students, and CCM students will be encouraged to attend events and will be allowed access to services on Montclair State’s campus.
“We hope to provide students who will join the Montclair State community through the Automatic Transfer Initiative with a Montclair State experience even before they start their studies on campus,” said Montclair State Director of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Indiveri-Gant.
Administrators from both institutions began meeting in May of this year to discuss the initiative, in order “to craft an agreement that would truly benefit the students of Morris County,” according to Indiveri-Gant. Dr. Anthony Iacono, who began on Sept. 1 as CCM’s new president, met privately with Cole on the day the initiative was signed.
“This strengthened relationship is part of a concerted effort to increase the scope of our partnerships with New Jersey’s community colleges, and provide more opportunities for students at these institutions to transition to a four-year university of Montclair State’s caliber,” said Indiveri-Gant in a press release.
“This fall, Montclair State has once again posted record-breaking student enrollment with an enrollment of 21,000 students, and our latest incoming class is one of the most accomplished in our history. We have no doubt the students of CCM can and will continue this positive trend when they become Red Hawks as part of this initiative.”
Montclair State is actively working to broaden this partnership to include other county colleges in New Jersey in order to “serve the residents of our state and immediate geographic region as fully as possible and in innovative and evolving ways,” according to Indiveri-Grant.
In a press release, Cole said, “Access to high-quality, affordable higher education should be available to anyone with the desire to pursue and the capacity to benefit by it, and this agreement will provide that opportunity for many students.”
