New Hampshire's Public Higher Education Systems to Collaborate and Co-locate in the North Country

Memorandum of Understanding to create efficiencies and enhance course offerings

December 13, 2005 – Berlin, NH – New Hampshire's two public higher education systems are collaborating to increase access to two-year and four-year public higher education for the citizens of the northern part of the state. Officials from the University System of New Hampshire (USNH) and the Community College System of New Hampshire (CCSNH) signed a Memorandum of Understanding today that calls for offering programs and courses in their Berlin and Littleton locations that help eliminate duplication and take maximum advantage of the two system's collective resources.

CCSNH Board Chair Paul Holloway, Commissioner Bill Simonton, and NHCC-Berlin President Kathy Eneguess participated in the signing ceremony with USNH Board of Trustees Chair Andy Lietz, Chancellor Stephen Reno, and Granite State College President Karol LaCroix, as well as staff from the North Country colleges.

Granite State College – a component of USNH –- will co-locate its Gorham/Berlin Center including its staff, programs, and services to the NHCC Berlin Campus by January 1, 2006. The Granite State College Littleton Center already has co-located with the NHCC Littleton Academic Center.

With this agreement, NHCC will have exclusive responsibility for awarding the Associate Degree at the Berlin and Littleton locations while Granite State College will offer the upper level courses that lead to a Baccalaureate Degree. In cases where students are seeking both the Associate and Baccalaureate degree, dual admission to both institutions will be available. Both Granite State College, as part of its statewide access mission, and NHCC-Berlin will continue to offer totally online programs.

"This collaboration will make the delivery of a wide array of programs and services to students attending our northernmost institutions of higher education more efficient, and improve their educational experience," said USNH Chancellor Reno. "It's a model that we may expand to other regions of the state where we believe students can benefit from having our combined resources under one roof."

According to CCSNH Commissioner Bill Simonton, "The Legislature has made clear its expectation that New Hampshire's two public college systems should look for ways to collaborate and function more efficiently. This type of cooperation will benefit students as well as taxpayers, and create a powerful, community-based higher education delivery system in the North Country."

The Memorandum of Understanding also calls for NHCC-Berlin to provide Granite State College and its students with access to classroom and computer lab space, to computers in the Learning Laboratory for computer assisted career exploration and student support services, provide academic support for students, and provide library access to students as well as data and phone connections to staff. Both institutions will list appropriate courses and programs in their respective marketing publications.

In Littleton, the two institutions are co-located at 646 Union Street. The Memorandum of Understanding will apply to operations at the Littleton location as well. NHCC-Berlin is located at 2020 Riverside Drive.

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