Kemi Jona, founding director of the Lowell Institute School at Northeastern and associate dean of undergraduate programs, shakes hands with STCC President John B. Cook during a signing ceremony.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – A new educational and workforce development partnership between Springfield Technical Community College and Northeastern University creates an opportunity for current STCC students, graduates and the general public to earn bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering technology and advanced manufacturing systems onsite at STCC.
In a ceremony on Nov. 1 at STCC, leaders from both institutions officially signed a memorandum of understanding to mark this partnership.
"Our engineering and manufacturing programs continue to be a signature of STCC, and we are very pleased to collaborate with Northeastern to deepen and enhance workforce efforts for Western Massachusetts,” said Dr. John B. Cook, president of STCC.
President Cook speaks at signing ceremony.
Students may choose either a pathway to a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering technology or in advanced manufacturing systems from Northeastern to be completed online and at STCC. Both degrees are part of the Lowell Institute School at Northeastern, which offers 15 bachelor’s degree programs, 10 of which are available completely online.
“This partnership with STCC is in keeping with the mission and tradition of the Lowell Institute School which began when A. Lawrence Lowell created the Lowell Institute School for Industrial Foremen in 1903,” said Dr. Kemi Jona, founding director of the Lowell Institute School and associate dean of undergraduate programs. “The goal then was to bring essential knowledge and opportunity to the people doing the work driving the economy of the new century. Today, the Lowell Institute School is still committed to this goal, reaching students in new ways and places."
Our engineering and manufacturing programs continue to be a signature of STCC, and we are very pleased to collaborate with Northeastern to deepen and enhance workforce efforts for Western Massachusetts. Dr. John B. Cook, President of STCC.
The agreement maximizes convenience and cost-effectiveness for STCC graduates who wish to obtain bachelor’s degrees in the two programs, said Dr. Adrienne Smith, dean of the School of Engineering Technologies & Mathematics at STCC.
Smith said most STCC students have families in the area and would prefer to get their bachelor’s degrees in the Springfield area. In addition to some online courses, classes will take place in the evening and possibly Saturdays, a benefit for the many students who work full time during the day, she said.
Northeastern faculty and some of STCC’s mechanical engineering technology and engineering science faculty will teach the classes at Springfield Technology Park, across the street from the STCC campus, beginning in January.
In the planning stages for over a year, the agreement with STCC marks the first time Northeastern has partnered with a community college to offer bachelor’s degrees on site, Smith said.
“The College of Professional Studies offers scholarships that our students can apply for and possibly receive to pay their tuition to Northeastern,” Smith said.
Additional sources of funding include tuition reimbursement by employers and scholarships targeted to military service members and their families, both with the potential to significantly offset educational costs.
One of the STCC students who hopes to take advantage of the program is Michael Grillo of West Springfield.
Grillo highlighted the cost-savings of getting a bachelor’s degree from Northeastern without having to leave Western Massachusetts. He was excited about being able to work during the day while enrolled in the program.
Visit the "Northeastern at STCC Information Session" on Tuesday, Nov. 7, between 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. The session will be held at the Andrew M. Scibelli Enterprise Center at STCC Technology Park (3rd Floor). For more information and to register for the event, click here.
The College of Professional Studies is one of nine colleges of Northeastern University, a nationally ranked private research university in Boston. Founded in 1960, the College teaches undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students on campus and online in more than 65 degree programs and is part of The Professional Advancement Network, a pioneering new model of education for working professionals who recognize the value of lifelong learning as a strategy for career development. More than 225,000 graduates make up the Northeastern alumni network, in all 50 U.S. states and in nearly 150 countries.
Left to right; Krassimir Marchev, professor, faculty director for Engineering Technology and Advanced Manufacturing Systems, Northeastern; Adrienne Smith, dean, School of Engineering Technologies & Mathematics, STCC; Siu Ming Luie, senior advisor to the dean, Academic & Curricular Planning, Northeastern; and Gary Masciadrelli, department chair, Mechanical Engineering Technology, STCC.