Northern Pennsylvania Regional College (NPRC) and Erie County Community College (EC3) have signed an academic agreement to aid current and future students in their academic journeys between institutions.
Leadership from the respective institutions met at the Corry Higher Education Council on Tuesday, October 3, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. for a formal event to sign the agreement into effect. Each institution will begin honoring course equivalencies as soon as the spring 2024 term, with the formal agreement going into effect in Fall 2024.
The agreement communicates course equivalencies between the two institutions. The goal is to better serve students who are currently residing or may reside in Erie County in the future. The agreement helps ensure clear communication regarding courses and programs at each institution and creates more seamless transferability.
The academic agreement will be honored for five years, and consistent reviews of course equivalencies will occur. These reviews are aimed to support learners to have smooth transitions between institutions. Northern Pennsylvania Regional College President, Susan Snelick, shared, “We celebrate this significant milestone for both NPRC and EC3. The official signing of this academic agreement is the result of dedicated collaboration between our institutions. This partnership with Erie County Community College will provide pathways and opportunities for our students to focus on their individual needs. This agreement provides a ‘no-wrong door’ approach for current and future students as they navigate their academic journeys. We look forward to working together to serve our communities and learners.”
Erie County Community College President, Dr. Chris Gray, provided similar sentiments, “We are thrilled to partner with NPRC. This partnership allows us the opportunity to better serve our northwest Pennsylvania population of students and make things as seamless as possible for them. This is just one of the many articulations EC3 has established, and we will continue to establish more as the college grows.”
EC3 Board of Trustees member and former Corry Mayor, Dave Mitchell, shared to those in attendance, “This is not just the signing of an agreement. This is a new day for education. We needed to work together for the good of students in northwestern Pennsylvania.” Former NPRC Chief of Staff and current NPRC Board of Trustees member, Duane Vicini, added, “Today was the beginning of a tremendous opportunity. I’m so proud of everyone who has made this agreement happen. I think the sky is the limit between EC3 and NPRC.”
NPRC offers five associate degrees, including business administration, criminal justice, early childhood education, liberal studies, and social sciences, while EC3 currently offers seven associate degree pathways in applied business, network systems, programming, mobile application development, criminal justice, and arts.
NPRC acknowledges that the information contained in this content is complete and accurate at time of publication. It is descriptive in nature and the college reserves the right to make any adjustments it deems necessary or desirable. Updates to programs, tuition, or other academic-related items will be reflected in the online College Catalog or on the respective College web pages. Questions regarding accuracy of content may be emailed to marketing@rrcnpa.org.