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MCC Daily Tribune

Governor Hochul Expands Support for SUNY Community College Students to Pursue Bachelor's Degrees

For Immediate Release: 9/27/2023

Governor Hochul Expands Support for SUNY Community College Students to Pursue Bachelor's Degrees 

Investment From ‘SUNY Transformation Fund’ Enacted in This Year’s Budget to Strengthen Transfer Opportunities Between Campuses and Offers Early Advisement to Help Students Achieve their Goals 

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the expansion of transfer pathways at 19 campuses across the State University of New York that will help more community college students continue their higher education and complete their bachelor’s degree. As a result of New York State investment through the SUNY Transformation Fund, which was enacted in this year’s budget, SUNY will strengthen transfer opportunities between campuses and offer more students early advisement. 

"Our unprecedented budget investments in SUNY are helping transform the lives of students and build a bright future for themselves and for New York, “Governor Hochul said. "We're working hard to remove barriers for students and ensuring they have the resources they need to earn degrees and enter the workforce ready and prepared for their chosen careers. Businesses in New York can rest assured when they hire these graduates, they’ll be arming their staff with the best of the best."  

Nationally, 80 percent of first-year community college students plan to further their education by obtaining a bachelor’s degree, however, only 17 percent of those students receive one within six years, according to the Community College Research Center. The investment from the Transformation Fund will help SUNY campuses partner further to expand transfer opportunities for more SUNY students. 

SUNY Chancellor John B. King, Jr. said, “SUNY is building on its longstanding commitment to transfer pathways, and through the SUNY Transformation Fund, we are ensuring that more community college students receive the support they need to continue through their education journey. Greater advisement is critical to this end, and our SUNY campuses will be partnering more closely to expand support and streamline their transfer process so that more students succeed. We are grateful to Governor Hochul for her historic investments in SUNY and commitment to public higher education so that more New Yorkers get their degree.” 

Examples of programs supported through the SUNY Transformation Fund investment – described in the Transfer Pathways Fact Sheet (suny.edu) (PDF) – include: 

  • SUNY Oneonta will partner with its sister community colleges to provide early personalized advisement to future transfer students on the campuses of Broome, Dutchess, Hudson Valley, Mohawk Valley, and Schenectady;
  • SUNY New Paltz will build in programming and communication support, including the hiring of an additional advisor to assist students with the transition from their community college to New Paltz;
  • Farmingdale State College also received a grant to work with Nassau and Suffolk Community Colleges to strengthen transfer opportunities;
  • Empire State University will use its funding to assist in the creation of additional multiple-award nursing programs with community colleges leading to a bachelor of science degree with a major in nursing. SUNY Empire currently has a multiple-award nursing program with Nassau Community College that has served several hundred students since its inception in 2018;
  • SUNY Brockport will use its funding to add a Coordinator of Transfer Programs, who will work to improve and streamline the transfer advisement and credit evaluation process and enhance transfer student-focused orientation for all transfer students, especially students from Monroe Community College, Finger Lakes Community College, and Genesee Community College; and,
  • University at Albany will establish dual-admission agreements with key community college partners – starting with Hudson Valley Community College, UAlbany’s largest transfer partner, with plans to expand to others with strong alignment with emerging academic programs at UAlbany.

Other campuses receiving funding to support transfer pathways include Brockport, Broome, University at Buffalo, Buffalo State, SUNY’s statutory campus at Cornell, Corning, ESF, Erie, Fredonia, Herkimer, Jefferson, Plattsburgh, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, and Westchester. 

In addition to the campus-specific programs, SUNY is also continuing SUNY Transfer Match – an initiative launched last year to provide automatic admission into SUNY baccalaureate degree programs to students who complete their degrees at a SUNY community college – and launched a new Transfer Task Force to strengthen transfer policies, increase transparency, and leverage technology to support students in achieving their degree goals. 

State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky said, “The 2023-24 budget included a $75 million appropriation for a Transformation Fund to improve student success and innovation. I am delighted that these funds will be used to improve the pathway between community colleges and the four-year institutions and allow those who pursue a bachelor’s degree a better opportunity to do so.”

Assemblymember Patricia Fahy said, "New York students' paths towards achieving their dream of attaining a degree at a college or university is often a journey rather than a straight line. By expanding transfer enrollment options and facilitating more flexibility for students within the SUNY Community College system, we're ensuring that more students will succeed and ultimately, complete their education. I commend Chancellor King and Governor Hochul for implementing these changes, and for partnering with me to secure $75 million for the SUNY Transformation Fund to help ensure all students in New York have the tools necessary to succeed, including the ability to transfer seamlessly within the SUNY system." 

Aspen Institute Vice President and Executive Director of the Aspen College of Excellence Program Josh Wyner said, “I am encouraged to see that the SUNY system is choosing to fund 19 partnerships to solve one of the biggest challenges facing higher education: the large number of students who enter community college aiming to transfer and earn a bachelor’s degree, but never do so. Across New York, thousands of students stand to benefit, earning bachelor’s degrees that will enable them to achieve their career goals. And communities stand to benefit too, if these partnerships result in more diverse students transferring and earning bachelor’s degrees in teaching, nursing, information technology, and other fields essential to the future of the entire state.” 

Chancellor King was at SUNY Oneonta today to speak about the expanded program. 

SUNY Oneonta President Alberto Cardelle said, “The notion of seamless transfer becomes a true reality when students are provided with consistent, individualized guidance while planning for and throughout the transfer process. Helping achieve that reality is our goal for SUNY Oneonta’s new transfer assistance program. Increased on-the-ground collaboration and communication with the partner institutions’ faculty and staff will allow us to not only provide quality in-person advisement to students but also to plan ahead for any necessary changes or enhancements to articulation agreements or transfer credit pathways.” 

University at Albany President Havidán Rodríguez said, “Community college transfer students are important members of UAlbany’s student body, and we owe it to them to make their transition to our campus as effortless as possible. These dual-admission agreements will help keep students’ focus where it should be – on their coursework - and will ensure UAlbany continues to benefit from the rich academic and life experiences that transfer students carry with them.” 

SUNY Brockport President Heidi Macpherson said, “The SUNY Transformation Fund provides SUNY Brockport with an opportunity to become an even more transfer-friendly university. We will utilize these funds to provide a smooth transition for transfer students from the point of inquiry, through their first six weeks at Brockport, and on to graduation. We are incredibly grateful to Governor Hochul for her continuing support of SUNY, SUNY Brockport, and our students.”

Empire State University President Lisa Vollendorf said, "This funding will play a pivotal role in enhancing the educational experience for students looking to advance their nursing careers. Empire State University's mission is and has always been to build on our students’ experiences to promote their growth and drive upward mobility and economic development in New York State. These transformational funds will help us do that." 

Farmingdale State College President John Nader said, “The SUNY Transformation fund equips campuses like Farmingdale State College with greater tools to improve student success, foster innovation, and help meet the state's future workforce needs. I am incredibly grateful to the Governor for her unwavering commitment to higher education as an engine of social mobility, which provides opportunities like this that help us better serve our students and ensure their academic success.” 

SUNY New Paltz President Darrell Wheeler said, “Community college transfer students are integral and valued members of the SUNY New Paltz community, and we welcome the opportunity to streamline and enhance their academic experiences at the University. The SUNY Transformation Fund will allow us to focus not only on degree completion but ultimately build upon their collective success through their future contributions to the economic growth of New York State.”  

About The State University of New York 

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY's 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the state’s only college of optometry, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.3 million students amongst its entire portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2022, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit the SUNY website (www.suny.edu). 

Patrick Morris
Community Relations
09/28/2023