HCC signs transfer agreement with Western Governors University
![WGU North Carolina Chancellor Ben Coulter and HCC President Shelley White shake hands after signing the agreement. Donated photo](https://smokymountainnews.s3.amazonaws.com/media/k2/items/cache/b2540582fd7b92cbaf88d7074ccfb2dc_XL.jpg?javer=2409040129)
Graduates and employees will have access to personalized learning pathways to higher education
On Friday, June 21, leaders from Haywood Community College and Western Governors University participated in a signing ceremony on campus to formalize a new transfer agreement between the tw o institutions.
HCC graduates and employees will now have access to flexible, personalized learning pathways to higher education and professional development through WGU. The agreement is further intended to formalize the transfer of applicable academic credits between the schools.
Additionally, HCC graduates, staff and faculty will be able to apply for specially designated WGU Community College Partner Scholarships valued at $2,500 each. Tuition is around $4,000 per six-month term for most WGU bachelor’s degree programs.
As a competency-based university, WGU offers students the option to take as many courses as they want per term with the consent of their assigned program mentor. WGU’s programs are designed to fit into busy work and home schedules.
Founded in 1997, WGU is an accredited, online nonprofit university offering more than 80 bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in healthcare, IT, business and K-12 education. The university has more than 175,000 students enrolled nationwide, including more than 5,300 in North Carolina.
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“We are pleased to partner with WGU to provide accessible higher education pathways for HCC students,” said Shelley White, president of HCC. These key partnerships open the door to a variety of important career options, many right here at home.”
“Haywood Community College has been a beacon of higher education in Western North Carolina since the 1960s and has continued to evolve to meet the needs of surrounding employers and communities,” said Ben Coulter, chancellor of WGU North Carolina and Southeast regional director of WGU. “As a resident of Maggie Valley, I am especially pleased to see this new partnership and know that it will produce positive results for decades to come.”
To learn more about Haywood Community College, visit www.haywood.edu. For more information about WGU, visit www.wgu.edu.