IU, Ivy Tech reach degree agreement

As of 3 p.m., Ivy Tech students in Bloomington acquiring an associate's degree in kinesiology can pursue a full bachelor's degree at IU-Bloomington.\nIvy Tech State College-Bloomington Chancellor John Whikehart and Interim IU-Bloomington Chancellor Ken Gros Louis will sign an articulation agreement today, their third such agreement in 14 months between the two institutions, which will allow students who have completed a two-year associate's degree at Ivy Tech to transfer their credits and work toward a full bachelor's degree at IUB in three different kinesiology fields.\n"Articulation is a more elaborate version of transferring," IU-Bloomington Associate Dean of the Faculties David Nordloh said. "If you've taken a program, we'll accept the results of that program. In turn, we make it possible for you to go on to proceed to a further degree."\nIvy Tech kinesiology students will be able to pursue a bachelor's degree in sports marketing and management, fitness specialty or exercise science, which according to a press release are the most rapidly growing majors in IU's Department of Kinesiology, a division of the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation.\nThe two schools have previous articulation agreements that allow for the transfer of credits toward IUB bachelor's degrees in general studies and biotechnology.\n"I think this particular agreement and each agreement before it has been an important step between Ivy Tech and the University," Whikehart said. "As we prepare to ask the higher education commission for approval, (the commission) requires a four-year articulation partner. IU is putting its name on the line in advance of the commission's actions saying, 'We are already here as a partner for these degrees.'"\nThe kinesiology articulation will be another way students will have the chance to benefit from more opportunities to acquire a bachelor's degree, Gros Louis said.\n"I think in the past Bloomington has been very slow to cooperate with Ivy Tech, much slower than IUPUI and Ivy Tech in Indianapolis, and that's a shame," Gros Louis said. "It's good and appropriate for students who want a four-year degree to come to Bloomington if they wish."\nNordloh said while IU is geared to be an institution where students attend and go to school full time, Ivy Tech, as a community college, allows students more flexibility to plan classes for the evenings or on weekends to accommodate with their schedules.\nGros Louis added he was unsure whether Ivy Tech and IU have any more articulation agreements in the works, but said he thought an articulation agreement with criminal justice may be among the next to be considered.\n-- Contact Senior Writer Tony Sams at ajsams@indiana.edu.