Program at local college helps first-generation students get a 4-year business degree
Daniel Hamilton said he feels more confident now that he has his bachelor’s degree.
“Being a first-generation student — the confidence wasn’t always there on being able to achieve things like a college degree,” said Hamilton, 41. “It’s given me a lot more confidence in that subject. I feel a lot of relief.”
Hamilton, who is a recent graduate of Pierce College, got his bachelor’s in applied science in business management last month. He and seven other students were the first cohort to receive their degree from the college’s program.
Pierce College’s applied business management program started accepting students in fall 2019. About 25 students are currently enrolled in the program, said Paul Gerhardt, chair for Pierce College’s Applied Business Program.
The program hopes to serve 60 students per year, Gerhardt said. In-state students looking to take 15 credits per quarter would have to pay about $2,453 total.
In addition to the applied science in business management degree, Pierce College also offers bachelor’s degrees in teaching, dental hygiene, fire services leadership and management, as well as homeland security emergency management.
Being able to provide bachelor’s degrees is a “relatively new thing” for community colleges in Washington state, Gerhardt said. Between the 1950-60s, community colleges existed to teach students basic skills, he said. In the early 2000s, some community colleges began offering bachelor’s programs as the institutions received approval from the state to do so.
“My grandmother only had an associate’s degree, and she was a grade school teacher,” Gerhardt said. “There were community colleges established all over the state to get people the skill sets needed to help support that community.”
Through Pierce College’s applied business management program, students with an associate degree from an accredited institution can get their bachelor’s by spending the remaining two years at the college.
“Our program was kind of built from the ground up,” Gerhardt said. “Unlike the universities, our program was built based on interviews with employers and doing research on what today’s employers are looking for in business graduates.”
Employers are looking for graduates who have technological, interpersonal and leadership skills, Gerhardt said. To help supplement that, one of the things the program requires students to have is internship experience before graduating.
Gerhardt said community colleges serve a specific niche — most of the students are first-generation college students or are trying to financially support themselves without their parents’ help. The college’s program is designed to help those students get their foot in the door, he said.
“We knew that our graduates needed more options to allow them to have even greater doors open to them,” Gerhardt said.
Hamilton grew up in California and attended high school in Seattle. He attained a work-study position while attending Pierce College and will continue working at the college as a credentials evaluator.
For Hamilton, being a first-generation college student was one of his biggest obstacles, he said. He could not seek guidance from his parents, and he had to figure out a lot of things for himself like filling out financial-aid applications.
“It was kind of a shock to me when I was accepted to the schools that I applied to only to find out as the term started that I actually couldn’t go because I couldn’t afford it,” Hamilton said.
Christel Person is another student part of the cohort that graduated last month. Person said she had second thoughts about college being the right path for her at first, but she managed to move past it.
“(Pierce College) really, really enforces a culture of success,” said Person, 42. “They have so many tools out there for students to succeed.”
Person is also from California and moved near Tacoma when she was 19. She worked full-time while she was attending Pierce College. Now that she has her bachelor’s, she is considering becoming an insurance agency owner, among other things.
“I remember when I turned in my final assignment that night — the joy that I felt in my heart and all over my body. It’s almost like I was floating,” Person said. “I feel smarter, more capable (and) resilient.”
