ODESSA - Odessa College students may have the opportunity to get a Bachelors degree. The plan was discussed at the Odessa Board of Trustees meeting that happened on Tuesday.
Odessa College is planning on partnering with universities, bringing their professors and upper division courses to the campus. Some Odessa College students are excited about this new plan and are now considering staying another two years to obtain their Bachelors degrees.
Rashawn Black, a two-year Communication student at Odessa College, said, "I still want to do a lot more and I love this town, so I kind of don't want to leave yet. That's why I would be happy if they add two more years to it."
College officials say that adding four-year degree plans could be an easier way for students to achieve their educational goals and still stay local.
Valerie Jones, Vice President of Instruction at Odessa College, said, "If an Odessan can't relocate, then their opportunities can be limited and their dreams have to be shifted and accommodate those restrictions from their lives. So what we wanted to be able to do is see if we could open those opportunities and really help to make a difference in the baccalaureate attainment rate for our community."
Statewide, 27 percent of Texans ages 25 and older, have a bachelors degree, but in Ector County only 13 percent have their Bachelors.
Jones says that it is partly because of the fear to venture out.
