The Committee on Baccalaureate Expansion will present plans to the UW System Board of Regents today to increase the number of bachelor degree holders in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin currently ranks 30th in number of citizens with bachelor's degrees.
The board formulated a cost-effective strategy to create an easier, more effective system for obtaining a bachelor's degree.
The proposal includes initiatives to develop collaborative degree programs and transfer credit policies.
If the state is successful in increasing the number of bachelor's degree holders, officials say the state's economy could drastically improve.
\I think everybody got energized and enthused about the possibilities,"" Regent spokesperson Doug Bradley said.
However, Bradley tempered his optimism with caution regarding the resources available to carry out the committee's proposal.
""It is a big presentation but [we are] going to have to take baby steps afterwards,"" he said.
Bradley mentioned several facets of the proposal, including a program to contact college dropouts who were only a small number of credits away from graduating and offering them incentives to return to school.
The committee presented initiatives to the tech system board Tuesday and the proposal was approved.
In a related item, the WTCS selected Dan Clancy to be the next president of the tech college system, according to a WTCS press release.
Clancy, who succeeds former System President Richard Carpenter, has been with the WTCS since 1996 and has been interim president since last summer.
