Colorado State University and Front Range Community College partner to expand access to higher education
Thanks to the creation of the Ram Transfer Academy, students in Northern Colorado will have a cheaper and quicker route to gaining a degree from Colorado State University through nearby Front Range Community College.
The new academy, which has been in the works for nearly a year, is now in the process of educating its first group of students.
"We are creating a community, a sense of belonging," said Colleen Simpson, president of FRCC.
The program was created to encourage students of all economic backgrounds to further pursue higher education by giving them greater access to both campuses in Fort Collins.
Students like freshman Ryan Foley can now take a majority of their classes at FRCC while also being able to take courses at CSU. Foley can also have student identification cards for both campuses, meaning he can also take advantage of student resources on the much larger CSU campus like the library and the anthropology club.
"I really wanted to be part of some of the clubs," Foley said.
Foley said he decided to join the first group of students in the academy as a way to get his degree in a field of passion.
"It helps my journey a lot. I failed out of a few colleges before I got here. I am an older student coming back," Foley said.
Foley, who wants to be an anthropologist, is engaged to a student at Colorado State University. He said being in this program gives him an affordable pathway to being able to pursue his dreams while also studying in the same setting as his partner.
"It is absolutely a soft launch to get me to where I want to be," Foley said. "Compared to my wife, I think I am paying almost half for this year than she is at CSU. I will be able to take some of the same classes for almost half the price."
Leadership at both CSU and FRCC said this program will not only help students but will also help attract students to both campuses as the nation continues to see a decline in enrollment for higher education.
"It cuts down a lot of the barriers for transfer students," said Kevin MacLennan, CSU's Vice President of Enrollment. "It helps more students get their bachelor's degrees."
"It is about access and opportunity. One of the things we want to do is make education the norm," Simpson said. "It is important for all students to feel they belong in college, and this is a great opportunity for them."
The two education institutions said they have more than 30 people enrolled in the program right now and hope to grow that to 50 by next year.
"This is absolutely the most excited I have been for higher education," Foley said.
