Manatee Community College Becomes State College of Florida to Reflect New Four-Year Nursing Program
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Del.icio.usManatee Community College, of Sarasota and Manatee counties in Florida, is no more — the school’s president, Lars Hafner, and his administration have changed its name from MCC to State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, one short month on the heels of an approval to start offering four-year RN to BSN degrees along with their standard two-year degrees. Some members of the local community seem to be up in arms about this sudden change, but Hafner is going on the record in defense of the school’s decision.
Hafner said the name change had been discussed at various commmunity meetings and forums he has attended since the college started talking about offering the four-year degree.
“The community had their say when we moved forward with baccalaureate and BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) degree,” he said.
The college’s board of trustees and Hafner had to get the new name in because the college plans to roll out the program by next January, he said. To enroll students in the program, the name of the college has to reflect its new status — an institution that offers the four-year degree… “Students who are going to enroll in the baccalaureate program would not enroll in an institution if it has a community college as a name,” he said.
The legal issue brought up by disgruntled community members was that the name change was in violation of Florida’s Sunshine Law, which states that “It is the policy of this state that all state, county, and municipal records are open for personal inspection and copying by any person. Providing access to public records is a duty of each agency.” However, experts noted that — while the issue could have been handled more publicly — the college was well within its rights with the name change.
Now, students at MCC — make that SCF — can go from RN to full BSN at the same school, opening doors to higher-paying jobs and the opportunity to go on for a master’s degree or higher. Interested in pursuing a BSN yourself? Check out hundreds of top nursing degrees across the country at Get Degrees.
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Editor: Melissa Steele is a freelance writer and focuses her research on funding for higher education. She is a graduate of UNLV and endeavors to keep her readers up to date with the most relevant education information.