Media invited to news conference at 11 a.m. Monday, April 20, at 4004 N. Webb Road.
More than a dozen local leaders will gather Monday, April 20, at the National Center for Aviation Training to make formal remarks as Wichita State University and Wichita Area Technical College kick off the brand new Shocker Pathway partnership.
Monday’s speakers will include Wichita’s new mayor, Jeff Longwell; John Bardo, president of WSU; Tony Kinkel, president of WATC; and Gary Alexander, vice president for Academic Affairs at the Kansas Board of Regents. Additionally, two of the first students to enroll in the Shocker Pathway will speak.
Shocker Pathway is an innovative approach to degree completion. It delivers a simple and convenient path to a college degree for a broad range of traditional or returning adult students. It is the first agreement of its kind in Kansas between a two-year technical college and a four-year university, and may be the only such partnership in the nation.
The agreement between WATC and WSU creates a joint Associate of Arts degree – called Shocker Pathway – to assist students who want to begin their coursework at WATC and finish their AA degree, or beyond, at WSU.
The program is designed to create a clear and guided route toward degree completion at Wichita State. Shocker Pathway will provide a seamless transition for students through a dual admission and collaborative advising process.
Kansas technical colleges are prohibited from issuing AA degrees. But the Kansas Board of Regents has granted technical colleges the authorization to teach individual general education courses, including 46 courses that KBOR has approved for seamless transfer across the system.
Shocker Pathway will allow students to bring up to 50 hours of transferable coursework from WATC to WSU. After that, students can take an additional 15 hours at WSU targeted to specific college requirements and have their AA awarded by WSU. Students may also choose to pursue a bachelor’s degree through the Shocker Pathway program, avoiding what has often been a difficult and confusing transition from a technical college to a four-year institution.
This also allows students to pursue more advanced degrees at Wichita State.
“This agreement between WSU and WATC is the first of its kind and it demonstrates how we, as a university, can use an innovative partnership to encourage degree completion and meet the needs of our community and students,” says WSU Provost and Senior Vice President Tony Vizzini.
Interested students can apply to the Shocker Pathway program through WATC at watc.edu or in person at WATC’s north campus (4004 N. Webb Rd.) or the south WATC campus (4501 E. 47th St. S.). A Shocker Pathway application will serve the needs of both institutions, and students will be pre-admitted to WSU using this application process.
Students will receive academic coaching from WATC and dual advising from the WSU Office of Adult Learning in consultation with the student’s academic advisor.
An academic plan will be developed for each student using the Shocker Pathway guide.
“As Sedgwick County institutions, WATC and WSU enjoy a strong partnership,” said Tony Kinkel, president of WATC. “With the formation of the Shocker Pathway, WATC and WSU are teaming up again to jointly deliver an innovative, two-year course of study in Wichita with the prestige of an Associate of Arts degree awarded by WSU.”
Event details:
Shocker Pathway launch event and press conference
11-11:30 a.m.
Monday, April 20
The auditorium of the National Center for Aviation Training
4004 N. Webb Road