GILROY
– Three new upper-division higher education courses are coming
to Gilroy this semester in an expansion of the University Center at
Gavilan College. Local residents can enroll in three San Jose State
University education courses as the University Center, which
offered one SJSU course last semester,
builds on its success.
GILROY – Three new upper-division higher education courses are coming to Gilroy this semester in an expansion of the University Center at Gavilan College. Local residents can enroll in three San Jose State University education courses as the University Center, which offered one SJSU course last semester, builds on its success.
“The students who did it last (semester) were very happy with it,” said Jan Bernstein Chargin, Gavilan’s public information officer. “We see the program expanding, bringing in complete degrees and, in the future, different subjects.”
Gavilan is also expanding the University Center program to its Hollister campus through a partnership with California State University at Monterey Bay for the first time this semester, offering two upper-division business courses.
Each of the three SJSU classes meets one afternoon a week. The classes are CHAD 102, Development of Self in a Culturally Diverse Society; EDUC 157, Community Action; and SOCS 177, Society and Education.
The classes may be used toward degrees other than education, she said.
They are open to students who are enrolled at SJSU. In addition, students who are enrolled in at least six units at Gavilan College may cross-enroll for one SJSU class by completing an application and paying a $10 cross enrollment fee.
Gavilan and SJSU officials hope that by bringing higher education to Gilroy, they are removing the distance barrier that keeps many students from pursuing the classes or career they want.
Sometimes, Chargin said, students who earn their Associate of Arts degree from Gavilan are unable to transfer and continue their education because they have family and job responsibilities in Gilroy and they cannot afford either to move or to commute.
“It’s a really win-win situation,” Chargin said. “Gavilan College can provide additional learning resources for students; San Jose State can increase their accessibility by bringing their program into the community, and students win by having access to a bachelor’s degree without having to commute or leave the area.”
Students wanting to enroll in two of the SJSU courses must pass the university’s writing skills test, which is administered at Gavilan. The test is not required for the Society and Education course.
About $18 million will be spent to expand the University Center in Gilroy if voters pass a $108-million bond on the March ballot. In Hollister, nearly $13 million in bond funds would be earmarked for building a permanent and expanded campus, including the University Center.
Registration for spring semester classes is under way until classes start Jan. 26. Late registration will run from Jan. 26 to Jan. 30.
