 First established as a “cooperative venture” with Springfield College in Illinois (SCI), Benedictine's affiliation with the college soon grew into a “permanent partnership,” as recognized by the Board of Trustees of both institutions in 2004.From that point forward, the University provided administrative, financial and leadership support to 
SCI, while also developing the University's own academic programs offered on the SCI campus.As required by regulatory and accreditation standards for a junior college, the academic programs the University offered in Springfield were “2+2” programs (consisting of the third and fourth years of four-year bachelor's degree programs), programs leading to master's degrees, and a doctoral program.