North Idaho College and Lewis-Clark State College signed a co-admission and co-enrollment agreement Thursday at the DeArmond Building on NIC’s Coeur d’Alene campus, as first reported by cdapress.com. NIC President Nick Swayne and LC State President Cynthia Pemberton announced the memorandum of understanding, which is designed to help Idaho’s working adults access higher education more easily.
What the Agreement Covers
Under the MOU, students can earn an associate degree at NIC and then complete a bachelor’s degree at LC State through a seamless transition. Students who finish an associate degree at NIC will have already satisfied LC State’s general education core requirements, unless a specific bachelor’s program requires particular core courses. Tuition is set by whichever institution offers the courses a student is taking, and residency pricing applies the same way it does for students enrolled at a single school.
Co-enrolled students will gain access to library and advising services at both institutions. The agreement also establishes a healthcare education pipeline between the two colleges and aims to make more effective use of staff, facilities, and student support resources at each campus.
A Partnership More Than Four Decades in the Making
LC State has offered bachelor’s degrees in Coeur d’Alene in partnership with NIC since 1982. Pemberton noted the depth of that relationship, saying “LC State and NIC have worked together for more than 40 years to meet North Idaho’s education needs seamlessly.”, as first reported by the Coeur d’Alene Press
Jennifer White, executive director of the Idaho State Board of Education, also praised the move. “This partnership is a great example of Idaho’s higher education system working together to better serve students,” she told cdapress.com.
The MOU’s stated goals include increased associate degree completion rates, improved undergraduate access, smoother movement between the two institutions, and better student support services. Both colleges also expect the agreement to help bolster enrollment at each campus.