The University announced that it has joined in a partnership with Houston Community College to provide employees of the city of Houston opportunities to gain a higher education.
Professional development courses, which encompass academic areas pertaining to the work of employees, will be made available through the E.B. Cape Center, located Downtown.
"HCC is excited to be part of an alliance that focuses on opportunities for higher education and provides a mean for receiving a degree," HCC Chancellor Mary Spangler said in a release.
The partnership has been in the works since 2005 and is set to begin in the fall semester.
"The city of Houston is a very important strategic partner to both UH and HCC," UH Assistant Vice President for Instructional Support Outreach Marshall Schott said. "When the city reached out to HCC and UH to discuss their education (and) workforce needs, we were interested in exploring how we could help."
The program will facilitate the educational pathway for city employees to earn a degree. Employees will learn of the program through educational and informational fairs and will be given improved access to academic advising.
Employees that have earned degrees from HCC have the opportunity to enroll at a UH System school and earn another degree.
"It’s a great partnership between the two schools and the city," Mayor Bill White said of the academic opportunity for city employees. "This gives us a valuable tool to help employees succeed in an economy that increasingly depends on information and education."
