FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContacts:
November 17, 2010Amy Kremenek, OCC, 315/317-9580
Kim Court, OCC, 315/498-2054
Kevin Quinn, SU, 315/443-8338
OnondagaCommunity College and
SyracuseUniversity Announce New “2+2” Dual Admission Agreements
Academically-qualified students will be guaranteed simultaneous admission to Onondaga and SU with seamless transfer into one of 33 SU degree programs and receive a predictive SU financial aid package
SYRACUSE, NY – In a signing ceremony held today, Onondaga Community College (OCC) President Debbie L. Sydow, Ph.D. and Syracuse University (SU) Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor, Ph.D., officially announced a partnership between the two institutions that will provide qualifying students with dual admission and guaranteed transfer into 33 degree programs at SyracuseUniversity. In addition, students will also receive a predictive SU financial aid package.
“I’m delighted to join with Chancellor Cantor to forge a unique partnership that will enable more high-achieving local students to complete an SU degree,” said Onondaga Community College President Debbie L. Sydow, Ph.D. “By attending Onondaga for the first two years and then transferring to SU to complete a baccalaureate degree, students will get the best of both worlds—a highly supportive learning environment at OCC as freshmen and sophomores and a carefully guided transition to a world-class university, all culminating in a low-cost SU degree. This is just one more example of Chancellor Cantor’s demonstrated commitment to local citizens and our Central New York community.”
"SU and OCC have forged a unique partnership that will truly benefit the students and families of Syracuse and Central New York," said Syracuse University Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor. "With this 2+2 program, we are constructing a crucial piece of the road to opportunity that starts with our local schools and with Say Yes to Education. It leads right through OCC--which President Sydow has made one of the great success stories of the SUNY system and one of the most innovative community colleges nationally--and continues through SU in a new and very promising way. This is a big step forward in building our community's capacity to compete nationally and internationally."
The new “2+2” agreements perfectly compliment the Say Yes to Education: Syracuse program. Begun in 2008 as a partnership between the Say Yes to Education foundation, SU, the Syracuse City School District (SCSD), Say Yes provides comprehensive support services and the promise of a free college education at more than 100 colleges and universities to all 21,000 students in the district.
OCC is a key partner in Say Yes and in the past two years it has enrolled more SCSD graduates through the program than any other institution. The initiatives announced today, combined with Say Yes, form a seamless continuum through which Syracuse city school students can graduate from high school, attend OCC for two years and graduate with an associate’s degree, and then enroll at and graduate from SU – all on a Say Yes to Education scholarship.
What is “2+2”?
Qualified students complete their first two years of study at OnondagaCommunity College and then transfer automatically and seamlessly with guaranteed admission to one of 33 degree programs at SyracuseUniversity colleges and schools listed below:
The College of Arts and Sciences
The School of Information Studies
The L.C.SmithCollege of Engineering and Computer Science
The MartinJ.WhitmanSchool of Management
The College of Human Ecology
The School of Education of SyracuseUniversity
Qualifying students can transfer into the following S.U. degree programs:
Aerospace Engineering
African-American Studies
Anthropology
Art and Music Histories
Bioengineering (Biomechanics)
Biology
Biomedical Engineering
Business Administration
Chemical Engineering
Chemistry
Civil Engineering
Computer Engineering
Computer Science
Earth Sciences
Economics
Electrical Engineering
Environmental Engineering
English and Textual Studies
Geography
Health and Exercise Science
History
Information Management and Technology
Literature, Language and Linguistics
Mathematics
Mechanical Engineering
Philosophy
Physical Education
Physics
Political Science
Psychology
Religion
Social Work
Sociology
Benefits
Provides local, high-achieving students with a clear pathway for continued studies in fields such as business, math/science, engineering science, and arts and sciences. Students can reduce their overall cost to attend college by paying Onondaga’s lower tuition for the first two years before transferring to SyracuseUniversity.
Financial Aid
Students will receive financial-aid packages from SU based on their current eligibility. They will receive an explanation of how the estimated financial aid package could change due to an increase in family income or financial situations. However, for the majority of students, their estimated aid package will be relatively close to what they will actually receive when they enroll.
These financial aid packages are intended to cover tuition, mandatory fees, housing, meals, supplies and books for those students who demonstrate financial need equal to or greater than these costs. Financial aid may include any combination of the following: Syracuse University Grant, Federal Pell Grant, NYS Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) award, Federal Direct Student loans, and Federal Work Study.
Phi Theta Kappa Merit Award
Onondaga students in the Phi Theta Kappa Society achieving a minimum 3.5 GPA and participating in the Phi Theta Kappa national honor two-year college honor society may qualify to apply for a $2,000 merit award from SyracuseUniversity.
Growing Partnership Between SU and OnondagaCommunity College
SU-Onondaga Joint Employee Educational Experience Scholarship
S.U. and OnondagaCommunity College recently agreed to support an ongoing arrangement for the education and development of Onondaga employees through scholarships at S.U. Selected staff and faculty members at Onondaga who are admitted into graduate/doctoral programs at S.U. through this program will be eligible to complete a course of study at S.U. with a full tuition scholarship grant.
SU-Onondaga Arts Exchange
Chancellor Cantor joined President Sydow on the Onondaga campus on September 15, 2010, to dedicate two recently installed sculptures by S.U. alumna Carole Eisner. Both leaders are committed to expanding the SU-Onondaga Arts Exchange in the interest of educational and cultural development.
With nearly 12,000 students, OnondagaCommunity College is the second-largest undergraduate institution in Central New York and one of the nation’s fastest-growing community colleges. Founded in 1961, it is a comprehensive two-year college operating under the State University of New York (SUNY) and is locally sponsored by OnondagaCounty. Onondaga offers nearly 50 programs of study, bachelor and master’s degrees available on campus through a regional higher education center, and more than 80 transfer agreements with four-year colleges and universities. Home to four-time NJCAA national champion men’s lacrosse and 2009 NJCAA women’s lacrosse teams, Onondaga has fifteen intercollegiate men’s and women’s athletic teams.
Chartered in 1870 as a private, coeducational institution of higher education, Syracuse University is a leading national research university of more than 18,000 full- and part-time students from all 50 states and 90 countries, and more than 1,400 faculty members. SU is propelled by the bold idea of Scholarship in Action—education that is not static, but the living expression of insight that drives change. It is a place where students become leaders, teachers and collaborators and where the community is continually impacted by the energy of new ideas.
Follow Onondaga
-30-