BC3 graduates, from left, Madison Semler of Butler, Lauren Schillero of Evans City and Kassandra Koprivnak of Butler take part in the pinning ceremony marking their successful completion of the registered nursing program.

Butler County Community College has established bachelor's degree completion partnerships for its registered nurse program graduates with three more universities and is working on another.

BC3 now has registered nurse bachelor's degree completion articulation agreements with four universities with the recent addition of Slippery Rock University, Carlow University and Waynesburg University.

An agreement with Chatham University was created two years ago, and Patty Annear, dean of BC3's nursing and allied health division, said she is working one with Lock Haven University.

“That's not signed sealed and delivered yet, but it's on the way,” Annear said.

All four agreements are in place for the spring semester. Representatives from the four universities have come to BC3 to talk to nursing students about the bachelor programs at their schools, she said.

BC3 students who pass the state registered nursing board exam after graduating with an associate of applied science in nursing can apply to the bachelor's of science in nursing programs at the four schools with about two-thirds of the credits needed to obtain a bachelor's degree, Annear said.

“We call our nursing articulation agreements three plus one programs. Students can get pretty much two-thirds of their bachelor's credits from BC3 and get the remaining one-third from those other universities,” Annear said.

“It's unique. Most articulation agreements are two plus two — 60 credits at community college then the other 60 at the other university. I wanted it to be a win win for Butler students and for us. We have cheaper rates here for those classes.”

BC3 nursing graduates can apply to any school's bachelor program, but the articulation agreements with the four universities reduce the money and time they have to spend to get bachelor's degrees, she said.

“This is the way to go with nursing education. You go to community college, get your degree, go to work right away and work toward your BSN while working,” Annear said.The bachelor programs at the four universities are available online, which benefits many students especially those who start working after graduation.“Once these students become RNs and they get jobs they need the flexibility of online classes to accommodate their work schedules, going at the pace they want,” Annear said. “They don't have to finish in two years. Some want to, but others might have kids or are working full-time.”Graduates could receive full or partial reimbursement of their bachelor's degree tuition from hospitals that offer it as an incentive to attract nurses due to a shortage of registered nurses, she said.“The financial incentives are great.” Annear said.She said she hasn't tracked the number of students who participated the articulation agreement with Chatham, but estimated that eight or nine students participated during the two years of the program.About 30 percent of BC3's nursing graduates go on to pursue their Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees right after graduation, she said.

Christopher Hornberger, a Butler County Community College registered nursing student, works in BC3's Janice Phillips Larrick simulation nursing laboratory.