Historically Black Savannah State University in Georgia and Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, have teamed up to create an enrollment “pipeline” between the two institutions.
The universities recently signed an agreement that allows some undergraduates at Savannah State, Georgia’s oldest public HBCU, to eventually qualify for in-state tuition at Grand Valley State University in one of three master’s degree programs: cybersecurity, criminal justice, and communications, none of which are currently offered at Savannah State. The two universities are also planning to add engineering and biomedical science to the agreement, by the end of the current academic year.
Grand Valley State University enrolls nearly 20,000 undergraduate students and more than 3,000 graduate students. African Americans are just 4 percent of the undergraduate student body. The new agreement with Savannah State aims to boost student diversity.
In addition to in-state tuition, the agreement includes funding for campus visits to Grand Valley, scholarship opportunities, internships prior to transfer, graduate assistantships, and industry-sponsored fellowships. The agreement also provides full-ride scholarships for at least two Savannah State students.
Grand Valley State University is “very interested in diversifying their programs,” said Savannah State vice president and interim provost Sametria McFall. “And we’re interested in making sure that our students have opportunities for programs that take them to and fro as they get to experience the world and share their talents around the world.”
