Should Illinois community colleges be allowed to offer 4-year degrees?

A proposed Illinois bill championed by Gov. JB Pritzker would allow community colleges to offer four-year degrees, a move bill authors say would make baccalaureate degrees more accessible and mitigate workforce shortages.

“This is a natural extension of what we’re focused on as community colleges, (which) is our commitment to help improve career pathways for students,” said Ken Trzaska, president of Lewis and Clark Community College in Godfrey.

But universities in southern Illinois are apprehensive.

“We’re certainly 100% supportive of anything we can do to improve access for students who want to get a degree. We need to find, I think as a state, a way to provide that education,” said Dan Mahony, president of the Southern Illinois University system. “The question is, ‘What is the best way to do that?’”

Both Mahony and McKendree University President Dan Dobbins praised the existing collaboration between their institutions and community colleges. However, opening the door for community colleges to offer four-year degrees could lead to what Mahony called “unproductive competition.”

“I think there’s more to be gained by collaborating and working as partners than potentially putting us into competition with one another,” Dobbins said.

Currently 24 states allow community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees.

As of now, two area community colleges — Southwestern Illinois College and Lewis and Clark Community College — do not have concrete plans to expand or otherwise alter their offerings should the bill pass.

But, more broadly, Trzaska is excited about the doors such legislation could open for students across the state.

Bill advocate says change could make 4-year degrees possible for some students

The bill’s text says students of color, those who work or have other responsibilities that prevent them from obtaining a traditional bachelor’s degree and those who live a considerable distance from a university in particular can benefit from bachelor’s degrees at community colleges.

Trzaska said these programs also benefit nontraditional students, or those who pursue higher education later in life instead of right out of high school. That’s especially true, he said, if a student has already acclimated to a community college campus, its faculty and resources.

“Being able to stay there and finish that four-year degree might be a lot more affordable, a lot more accessible, and, quite frankly, a lot more convenient for those students,” Trzaska said.

He also pointed to a recent survey. Of over 400 students from various community colleges in Illinois, 75% said they would be more interested in pursuing a bachelor’s degree if their community college offered one at a lower cost.

Melissa McKaig, a Lewis and Clark nursing student from Jerseyville, said she knows of several students who would pursue a bachelor’s degree at the community college if they offered one. She spoke during a Monday afternoon news conference Pritzker conducted at Lewis and Clark as part of an effort to raise awareness about the bill.

This might be the only way McKaig could get a four-year degree in her field, she said. Between family and financial obligations, switching colleges isn’t possible right now, she explained.

The proposed legislation seeks to target in-demand career paths in particular. Along with being approved by the Illinois Board of Higher Education and Illinois Community College Board, community college baccalaureate programs must meet specific conditions. One of those is to show how the new program meets unmet local workforce needs.

In his State of the State address last month, Pritzker gave nursing, early childhood education and advanced manufacturing as examples.

But between online programs and university-community college partnerships, there are already many options tailored to helping Illinois’ working, rural, nontraditional and community college students obtain a bachelor’s degree, Mahony and Dobbins said.

The bill specifies that another higher education institution cannot prevent a community college from offering a baccalaureate degree program. However, in order to start a 4-year degree program, a community college needs to show that their new program “will not necessarily duplicate the degree programs offered by other institutions of higher education in the community college’s district.”

It also allows nearby educational institutions to weigh in before the program is approved.

There’s one common thread in the universities’ and community colleges’ response to the bill: it’s important they work together when discussing potential new programs.

SWIC leadership declined an interview, but President Nick J. Mance issued the following statement:

“Southwestern Illinois College deeply values its strong partnerships with all 4-year institutions. College administration is closely monitoring this proposed legislation regarding the potential offering of 4-year degrees. While we recognize this legislation is primarily aimed at addressing the hire-demand career path needs of local communities, it is still in the early stages of development; and we have no further comment.”

Could bill help undergrad enrollment in Illinois?

A 2023 Illinois State Board of Education report shows undergraduate enrollment has dipped by approximately 20% since 2014. At the same time, the country is bracing for a decline in the number of 18 year olds.

To Dobbins, this data reveals another flaw in the proposal.

“Why expand capacity at a time when demand will be declining?” Dobbins questioned.

Monday’s press conference came on the heels of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville confirming layoffs and program cuts are coming to combat a $10.3 million deficit, one that’s fueled by enrollment issues and increased operational expenses, St. Louis Public Radio reported.

At the news conference, Pritzker was asked if providing four-year degrees at community colleges could cause further damage in such situations.

“We’re working hard, again, to collaborate with the universities,” Pritzker responded. “We don’t want to take students away, but the bigger issue, frankly, for many universities is funding ... We’ve been working very hard over the last six years to improve funding for our universities, just as we have for our community colleges.”

Trzaska previously told the BND that if there are more affordable, flexible bachelor’s degree options, such as those degrees being offered at community college, more people could access post-secondary education. Then enrollment could rise, he said.

“If they want to be part of these programs, why wouldn’t we create broader pathways to support that?” Trzaska said.

This story was originally published March 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM.