Bothell, Tacoma campuses consider four-year option

UW Bothell and Tacoma plan to transition to four-year universities in 2006, pending approval from the state.

If approved, both UW Bothell and Tacoma will admit their first-ever freshmen classes autumn quarter 2006.

"The main goal is for the UW to do its part in meeting the increased demand for a baccalaureate education," said Acting Provost David Thorud.

Each of the four branches of the major state-funded institutions, the UW and WSU, were asked to complete a study in order to see if the needs of the community were being served, according to Tom Bellamy, vice chancellor of academic affairs at UW Bothell.

"We studied the needs of King and Snohomish counties and focused specifically on a very large number of students that have met the requirements for admission ... but probably won't be served due to space limitations on the UW Seattle campus," said Bellamy. "UW Bothell should be one of the ways that UW can expand to meet the demand."

If the proposal passes, UW Bothell will enroll a freshmen and sophomore class, each composed of between 200 and 250 students, in order to have a small, non-residential, but highly academic student body, Bellamy said.

UW Tacoma also plans to enroll approximately 200 students to give students more options for their education. This will allow students to choose between the "two-plus-two system," in which a student completes the first two years at a community college and the next two at a four-year institution or completing the entirety of their education at a four-year university.

"There is no choice for south Puget Sound students. We think students should have the choice of what kind of education they receive, whether it be the two-plus-two or four-year experience," said Jack Nelson, vice chancellor of academic affairs at UW Tacoma.

Transitioning from a two-year to four-year institution would require major changes for each of the branches.

"We would have to develop a whole lower division curriculum and hire the faculty that will deliver it," said Nelson. "We have to have a new recruitment methodology, new advising service and support services that freshmen need."

Expanding the Bothell and Tacoma campuses should aid the UW in solving the problem of overcrowding.

"[Lowering overcrowding] is one of the goals," said Thorud. "Obviously we do have additional capacity at UW Tacoma and Bothell. When those two campuses were established we always knew that's where additional capacity would be."

According to Nelson, qualified students who do not attain admission to the UW because of a lack of space often turn first to other in-state universities, such as Western Washington University, which is also overcrowded, and then are forced to look out of state. By expanding the UW branch campuses, the UW hopes to keep scholars in Washington state.

"It will retain Washington sons and daughters," said Thorud. "If they go out of state to be educated elsewhere, a fairly large percent never return. Why wouldn't we want to educate them here and have them be a part of the future of Washington state?"

WSU Vancouver is also planning to make the transition to a four-year university to meet the needs of the surrounding community by enrolling a 200-person freshmen class in autumn 2006, expanding at a 7.5 percent growth rate through the year 2015.

According to WSU Vancouver chancellor, Hal Dengerink, only 40 percent of students in the area will consider attending a community college and then transferring to WSU Vancouver.

"The two-plus-two system is a pathway to a baccalaureate degree that only appeals to roughly 40 percent of the market," said Dengerink. "Sixty percent want a full four-year program and won't consider community college. Of that 60 percent some clearly want to go away but another group wants a local alternative for a four-year degree."

The proposed date to admit students to UW Tacoma, fall 2006, may be pushed back because of budget constraints, according Nelson.

"The report calls for admitting freshmen in the fall of 2006. More realistically is in the fall of 2007 given that the proposed ballot to fund education (Initiative I-884) failed," said Nelson. "That would have given significant funding, so we are anticipating less money than before."

Even though the transition to a four-year institution would be a large change for the branches, Nelson affirms that each branch is still firmly dedicated to serving transfer students.

"Our first priority is to serve transfer students. We are not turning our backs on these students; meeting the needs of transfer students remains our number one priority," said Nelson.