Lumina grant a boost for higher education

A recent grant that may lead to another four-year university locating in Yuma at affordable tuition is a huge step forward to accessing higher education, according to local educators.

Lumina Foundation, a private foundation that aims to broaden university education, awarded Arizona $1.5 million. This is a first step to provide a "no frills" program within the state's university system at a lower cost, according to published reports.

"As I understand the grant, it's an opportunity for four-year universities and community colleges to take a look at everything it's doing," said Marc Nigliazzo, Arizona Western College president. "Higher education must change the way it does its programming, and the Lumina grant can be a real catalyst for discussing how that change can come about."

The idea is to set up the first of several planned regional universities offering low-cost bachelor degree programs beginning next year, Nigliazzo said. For example, Maricopa Community College and Arizona State University have begun discussions to offer a four-year bachelor's degree at the two-year school's campus.

Regional universities will enroll no more than 3,000 while providing targeted degrees in the fields that are in the greatest demand within a particular locale. The needs of Yuma, where there is a shortage of high school teachers, are different from other parts of the state, he explained.

Recent tuition hikes at the state's three universities require freshmen who are residents to pay more than $6,000 a year, noted Monday's story in the Yuma Sun. But AWC's tuition, at $1,800 a year, is less than one-third the expense, Nigliazzo said.

"I expect the cost of regional universities to be somewhere between those two. The regional university will be affiliated with the three major universities and cooperate electronically so students still have access to the state universities."

He said cost is obviously a huge issue and with the current economy, no brick-and-mortar institutions are likely to be built soon.

"I personally believe the AWC/NAU (Northern Arizona University)-Yuma partnership is the model of how the state should proceed. There may not be a single model. And that's a good thing because Arizona needs different models across the state to ensure future prosperity."

Education is the driving factor of how the state could emerge from the current recession, Nigliazzo said. The jobs of this century will increasing rely on science and technology, which is one of the great strengths of AWC/NAU-Yuma.

"You get leaner and meaner by delivering less-expensive education to a wider area. It's very important Arizona got the Lumina grant because it has accelerated the planning of higher education's future."

John Haeger, NAU president, noted in an e-mail that the Lumina grant could not have been more welcome.

"For three decades, NAU has taken higher education to where people live in the communities throughout Arizona. We have stepped up that effort significantly with joint admissions and four-year degree programs with community colleges."  

Larry Gould, NAU-Yuma campus executive officer, noted his branch also has joint admissions with its partner AWC.

"We're looking at the potential for streamlined four-year degree plans within the NAU-AWC partnership."

He said NAU-Yuma is using its curricular process as a template to carry over to NAU-Yavapai.

Funds from the grant will be disbursed by the state Legislature, which needs to decided how to proceed. Therefore, the details of where and when a regional university could open in Yuma are still only in the planning stages, said Tara Roberts, NAU-Yuma spokeswoman.