Colorado State University and the Colorado Community College System recently signed an agreement to partner on a new associate in engineering science degree. This degree is designed to help community college students directly transfer to CSU’s mechanical engineering program.

CSU President Joyce McConnell and CCCS Chancellor Joe Garcia signed the agreement Oct. 26. The agreement will streamline a process for students to do two years of work at a community college then transfer to CSU.

The host of the signing ceremony, Woodward Inc., is a firm in Fort Collins that is a “designer, manufacturer and service provider of energy control and optimization solutions for aerospace and industrial markets.”

According to CSU SOURCE, “the agreement is essentially a broad promise between the community college system and CSU that gives students a structured, no-surprises pathway leading from an associate degree into a bachelor’s degree program in the same discipline.”

“This program opens up the door for more diverse communities to approach engineering degrees. That diversity of background and thought are key to us for our future innovations.” -Douglas Salter, Woodward Inc. chief technology officer

Although students from CCCS institutions were able to transfer to CSU mechanical engineering before the agreement, some students didn’t have the prerequisites necessary to begin CSU’s program. With the new agreement, it is guaranteed that students who have completed their associate in engineering science degree at a community college can directly transfer into CSU and be on track to receive their bachelor’s once they transfer.

“The important point is that the credits are lockstep from the community college system to CSU,” Woodward Inc. Chief Technology Officer Douglas Salter wrote in an email to The Collegian. “When a student wants to start at a more cost-effective, closer school, they can be assured that their classes are both appropriate for follow-on classes and will fully transfer.”

Alongside hosting the signing ceremony, Woodward is involved with CSU’s Industrial Advisory Board. Salter supported this agreement when he joined the board. Salter emphasized innovation when discussing why Woodward supported the transfer agreement.

“Innovation works better when you have a diversity of thought and thought processes,” Salter wrote. “This program opens up the door for more diverse communities to approach engineering degrees. That diversity of background and thought are key to us for our future innovations.”

Salter wrote Woodward has many CSU alumni in their company and intern programs, sponsors senior projects in both the mechanical engineering and electrical engineering departments and contributes to the CSU System’s engineering program.

“We encourage our membership to pursue educational opportunities, and this is a great chance for people to utilize both Front Range Community College and Colorado State University,” Woodward Director of Advanced Manufacturing Keith Korasick wrote in an email to The Collegian.

The Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce also gave a financial gift to help community college students who transfer to CSU for a mechanical engineering degree.

“This is absolutely an opportunity for us to streamline learning opportunities and to create important talent for the future,” President and CEO of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce Ann Hutchison wrote in an email to The Collegian.

SOURCE also wrote about how the agreement has been years in the making and CSU and CCCS faculty are already considering additional degrees with similar arrangements.

Reach Piper Russell at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @PiperRussell10.