Colorado State University Pueblo and Pikes Peak State College are partnering to allow students to complete two degrees at one location.

Nearly half of PPSC students plan to transfer to another school after completing their associate degree, according to a news release. A five-year agreement between the two parties means students can obtain both their associate and bachelor’s degrees without a complicated transfer process or having to change locations.

“This transformative partnership between Pikes Peak State College and Colorado State University Pueblo will provide our students with the unique opportunity to easily transfer to CSU Pueblo to complete a four-year degree,” CSU Pueblo President Timothy Mottet said in a news release.

The institutions will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 2 p.m. Friday to introduce the community to a new shared space on the PPSC Centennial campus. Students who attend the event will be eligible for a drawing of a $1,000 scholarship.

Students this fall can take upper-level classes to finish their associate degrees before transferring to CSU Pueblo while remaining on the PPSC Centennial campus. Students can complete a bachelor’s and master’s degree in social work or a bachelor’s degree in criminology and sociology.

The partnership is the latest in several connections that PPSC has made with local schools in recent years. In 2020, qualifying Harrison School District 2 graduates began receiving promise scholarships through the Dakota Foundation and Legacy Institute to attend PPSC for free. Last week, Colorado Springs School District 11 extended a similar offer in partnership with PPSC to all of its graduating high school seniors.

With this announcement, CSU Pueblo students will have access to PPSC support services including the learning commons, library and tutoring center. The shared space will house the CSU Pueblo transfer center and support students with advising and administrative support “to guide students into CSUP classes and through different types of admissions applications,” according to spokesperson Matt Radcliffe. There is no limit to how many students can take advantage of the transfer opportunity.

“The expanded relationship between Pikes Peak State College and CSU Pueblo will help streamline the transfer of credits for any student seeking a four-year degree; it will provide another way that PPSC can create pathways for our military students to be successful, and we are confident this will support enrollment growth at both institutions,” PPSC President Lance Bolton said in the release.