RELLIS CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROGRAM OFFER OPPORTUNITY FOR CALDWELL MAN

  

Antonio Garcia can now pursue a criminal justice degree from Tarleton without leaving the Brazos Valley

Caldwell resident Antonio Garcia was seeking a nearby criminal justice program that could put him on track for a future career as a Texas Department of Public Safety officer.

At the RELLIS Campus, he found an opportunity to complete his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Tarleton State University while keeping fuel in his gas tank.

“It was a pleasant surprise to hear that a criminal justice bachelor’s degree will be offered in this area,” he said. “It is less than 20 miles from where I live, affordable, and it will be easy to transfer my Blinn courses to Tarleton.”

Located in Bryan, the RELLIS Campus fosters cutting-edge research, technology development, higher education, and workforce training. Through the Academic Alliance, students can complete their freshman- and sophomore-level courses through Blinn College, and seamlessly complete their bachelor’s degree in related fields from an A&M System regional university, including Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Prairie View A&M University, Tarleton State University, Texas A&M International University, West Texas A&M University, Texas A&M University-Texarkana, Texas A&M University-Kingsville and Texas A&M University-Central Texas.

Blinn will open the Walter C. Schwartz Building, a new 83,000-square-foot facility at the RELLIS Campus, for the Fall 2018 semester. All RELLIS students will utilize the 19 classrooms and eight laboratories during the first academic year.

The Texas A&M System’s academic facility, located across the street from Blinn’s facility at RELLIS, is scheduled for completion in June 2019. Upper-division RELLIS students will complete their bachelor’s degrees at the facility upon its completion.

In addition to a seamless transition process, the RELLIS Academic Alliance offers a competitive tuition rate. Students enrolled in upper-division courses at one of the Texas A&M System regional universities at the RELLIS Campus pay $295 per semester credit hour, or $8,850 for a 15-hour course load for the fall and spring semesters – almost $2,000 less than many other universities in the region.

Students taking Blinn courses at the RELLIS Campus pay Blinn’s tuition rate of $111 per semester credit hour for out-of-district students.

Garcia will earn his Associate of Arts in Criminal Justice from Blinn before completing his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice through Tarleton at the RELLIS Campus. Tarleton’s Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice offers courses that prepare students for career entry or promotion in a variety of criminal justice areas, as well as federal employment and/or graduate study.

Garcia looks forward to interacting with faculty comprised of police officers, correctional staff, and criminal law professionals who integrate textbook material with professional practices to provide valuable insight into the justice system.

“The RELLIS Academic Alliance is bringing bigger and better opportunities closer to my hometown,” he said. “It is a great feeling to be a part of a new and innovative concept.”

Transfer Fairs for prospective RELLIS students are scheduled for:

• Thursday, June 28; 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
• Thursday, July 26; 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.

For more information or to sign up to attend a RELLIS Transfer Fair, visit http://rellis.tamu.edu/transfer.

(COURTESY: Richard Bray, Blinn Information)