Shorter College a Thriving Center of Urban Education

Little Rock, AR, September 22, 2014 (Newswire.com) - Shorter College, Arkansas’ only private, two-year institution continues to experience a surge in student enrollment, with more than 400 students enrolled full- and part-time for the 2014 fall semester.

In just two years, North Little Rock’s Shorter College has gone from an institution on the brink of demise, with just two fully admitted students, to a thriving center of urban education.

“We are proud of the growth happening on our campus. Students are learning and undergoing character transformations that will help them succeed once they complete their coursework at Shorter,” President Jerome Green said.

The Transformative Experience for students involves President Green’s “Four Cs”—Competence, Character, Culture and Citizenship—a mantra that draws on Shorter’s history as an institution founded to educate disenfranchised, African-American youth.  Shorter’s mission underscores the importance of education as a tool to lift one’s self out of poverty. 

Wesley Allen, the second graduate of the newly accredited Shorter College, credits Shorter for helping him succeed academically, despite being homeless and fighting drug and gang life, all while caring for his son. Allen graduated from Shorter College with an Associate of Arts degree and is now attending Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida where he received a full scholarship.

“I am thankful for the faculty, staff and students at Shorter College. They saved my life and made me a great student and father to my son,” Allen said. 

Shorter College is also transforming students’ lives and enhancing the community in which it is located through a number of new partnerships and projects, including:

• A credit transfer agreement with Philander Smith College and Arkansas Baptist College which allows Shorter graduates to transfer credit hours to these institutions in order to pursue a four-year degree;

• A partnership with the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)Council 750 that will better enable Shorter to serve members of the Hispanic community; 

• A partnership with the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services that will allow Shorter College to offer Career Readiness Certificates through the state-administered program;

• A capital campaign to fund the construction of student housing, which will stimulate economic development in the surrounding North Little Rock communities; and,

• Free broadband internet for citizens in nearby neighborhoods. 

For more information about Shorter College contact Stephanie Jackson at 501.492.4900 or [email protected].

About Shorter College

Shorter College was founded by the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1886 to provide educational training and experiences to ex-slaves and African Americans who did not have access to public education institutions. Today, the mission of Shorter College is to provide accessible, affordable, high quality education for students of all races, to accomplish goals by offering programs that meet the learner’s need in a challenging and nurturing Christian environment.