LIVONIA, MI—Governor Rick Snyder is expected to sign new legislation that will allow Schoolcraft College and other community colleges in Michigan to grant bachelor’s degrees in selected fields, including energy production, concrete technology, maritime technology and culinary arts. “Schoolcraft is well-positioned, especially with regard to the culinary arts baccalaureate degree, to move forward quickly to make this new opportunity available to our students,” said Dr. Conway A. Jeffress, president of Schoolcraft College. “With the long-standing history and stellar reputation that our Culinary Arts program currently enjoys, we anticipate that our baccalaureate program in culinary arts will also quickly become one of the top programs in the country as well.” The college’s Culinary Arts program, established in 1966, is accredited by the American Culinary Federation Education Foundations Commission and includes four Certified Master Chefs (CMC) and four Certified Executive Chefs among the faculty. With four of the 66 individuals that hold the CMC designation in the United States, Schoolcraft has the highest CMC-to-student ratio than any other culinary faculty in the country.
For many students, earning a bachelor’s degree at a university is impeded by job and family constraints, in addition to the cost of tuition. Community colleges can provide greater access to a baccalaureate education for many students by virtue of their location, technical and applied expertise, quality programs and lower cost per credit hour.
In a statement released by the Michigan Community College Association, Rep. Walsh explained the importance of this legislation for Michigan’s economy and future. “During these difficult economic times, we must look for ways to do more with less. It is not fiscally responsible to spend money developing new programs in the state’s four-year university systems when community colleges already have the curriculum, faculty, and existing capacity to meet the demand for these specific baccalaureate programs. This bill is a step in the right direction towards curbing workforce shortages, increasing access to affordable education, and reducing unemployment.”
The legislation, HB 4496, introduced by Representative John Walsh (R-Livonia) originally called for nursing to be included with the four other areas that were approved. All 28 community colleges in Michigan will be authorized to offer these specialized, technical degrees but not all of the community colleges will choose to do so. “The applied and technical fields that are included in the legislation are specialized and tailored to meet employer needs in high-demand areas, and are those fields where there aren’t sufficient programs offered at the universities,” said Dr. Jeffress.
“While we are excited about the opportunities this brings for our culinary program and our students, we are very disappointed that nursing was not included in this legislation. Even though we here in southeast Michigan are fortunate to have some of the best medical facilities in the nation, the nursing shortage continues to grow as more and more hospitals especially in our region require a BSN degree for employment; our population continues to grow older, placing more demands on the health care system; and current nursing professionals themselves are preparing to retire,” he said. “This situation is only made worse because of the lack of training opportunities for nurses that are currently only available at universities in the state,” said Jeffress. “We will continue to work with healthcare professionals and leaders at the state to address this ongoing issue and to explore opportunities to maximize the quality educational resources we offer to help train these professionals and meet the needs of the communities we serve.”
Schoolcraft College is a public, predominantly two-year college, offering classes at the Livonia campus, Haggerty Road between Six and Seven Mile Roads; at the Radcliff Center in Garden City; the Public Safety Training Complex in Livonia; and online at www.schoolcraft.edu.