West Chester U, Delco Community College Make Transfer Easier

WEST CHESTER, PA — A newly forged agreement for dual admission will help Delco Community College students transfer easily into degree programs at West Chester University without losing credits earned in their associate degree programs.

West Chester University President Dr. Christopher Fiorentino and Delaware County Community College President Dr. L. Joy Gates Black this week announced the strengthened dual admission agreement that will enables qualified, enrolled Delaware County Community College students to earn an associate degree and then transfer seamlessly to West Chester University in a parallel major with opportunities not typical of such agreements.

Qualified Delco CC students will now be able to transfer to WCU with guaranteed housing, a renewable scholarship, and success coaching. The announcement comes at a time when the pandemic has increased student needs and challenges.

Already 245 current students at Delaware County Community College will benefit from the enhanced dual admission program, West Chester University said. On average, one out of every three transfer students to West Chester University comes from Delaware County Community College.

"We are here to celebrate the signing of a new dual admission agreement that will provide an affordable pathway to a bachelor’s degree," said Gates Black.

"Under this agreement, graduating high school seniors and Delaware County Community College students who wish to pursue a bachelor's degree at West Chester University will, upon signing an Intent to Enroll form, receive conditional admission to the university. This dual admission program requires that students complete their associate degree at Delaware County Community College prior to transferring to West Chester University, but all credits taken at Delaware County as part of an associate degree will transfer in their entirety. We are excited about what this means for our students and our communities."

Under the enhanced agreement, more than 20 associate degree programs at Delaware County Community College will be eligible for transfer into parallel programs at West Chester University.

At West Chester University, program participants will receive a renewable scholarship award of $2,000 per academic year, up to $4,000 in the course of their studies, said WCU's Fiorentino.

Additionally, they will be offered guaranteed campus housing, if they desire, once West Chester University's campus re-opens fully.

"The pandemic has brought unparalleled challenges to our communities and heightened the need to create accessible and affordable pathways to higher education. I am very proud that West Chester University and Delaware County Community College are working collaboratively to address this critical issue,” Fiorentino said.

The virtual celebration of the dual enrollment agreement held this week featured two students who have made the successful transition from Delaware County Community College to West Chester University. Their stories are remarkable.

WCU student Frederick Shegog of Drexel Hill transferred from Delaware Community College to the University in 2020 as a member of Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Society, one of Coca-Cola Foundation’s 207 Leaders of Promise scholars, and a Phi Theta Kappa All-PA scholar, who receives full tuition to the University.

His success might be surprising to some. "Not long ago, I was an alcoholic and homeless. Today, I am sober, blessed with a home, a wonderful family, and a purpose," said Shegog.

"This past spring, I graduated from Delaware County Community College, where I majored in communication. In 2022, I will graduate from West Chester University, where I am majoring in communication with a minor in leadership through WCU’s Honors College," he added.

"As a person in recovery, I am passionate about wanting to help others suffering from substance abuse disorder. During my time at Delaware County, I created The Message, LLC, a motivational speaking company that I use to share my story, which WCU embraces. WCU Communication Professor Dr. Elizabeth Munz is helping me obtain my first publication at a national conference, and Delaware County and WCU professors have offered to help edit my first book."

Delaware County Community College's 2020 Commencement speaker is now a WCU student. Meredith Adams, of Radnor, also spoke about her journey.

"Before Delaware County Community College, I had a really difficult time with college and really didn’t know what to expect," said Adams.

the first-generation college student attended two different four-year institutions of higher learning before finding her home-away-from-home at Delaware County Community College. Having earned an associate degree in liberal arts from the College, Adams is now majoring in accounting and finance at the West Chester University, with a minor in civic and professional leadership in the Honors College.

"Throughout my college career, my major did change a couple of times, which is okay! Delaware County really helped me calm down and focus on what I liked and what fields I could see myself in," she explained.

"Because of the existing agreement between the College and the University, I will be leaving school with very little debt, which will allow me to get ahead in my career. Fast forward to now, I am loving West Chester. I feel so welcome, even with starting completely virtual," said Adams.

Each student also acknowledged the extensive support that they have received from the two institutions; both have benefited from agreements that enabled them to transfer all of their credits so they could begin as juniors at WCU.

To participate in the dual admission program, eligible students must receive their associate degree and meet all WCU degree, major, and grade point average requirements. Excluded from the new enhanced dual admission agreement are West Chester University's biomedical engineering, social work, exploratory studies, sports medicine, and traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) major programs.

As the two institutions of higher learning work together to increase educational opportunities for area students, the strengthened dual admission agreement is the latest of several collaborative agreements.

In March of 2018, the two institutions signed an articulation agreement that brings WCU to the College's Marple Campus to offer the third and fourth year of students' Bachelor of Science in Business Management degree.

In addition, Delaware County Community College and West Chester University also offer the Registered Nurse-Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN-BSN) pathway from Delaware County Community College to West Chester University. The two institutions' revised RN-BSN Concurrent Enrollment Agreement, which was also enacted in 2018, provides another affordable pathway for qualified Associate of Science in Nursing degree students at Delaware County Community College to earn the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree with 30 additional credits.