Northwestern State University and SOWELA Technical Community College in Lake Charles signed an agreement that will allow fulltime SOWELA faculty and staff to enroll in up to six undergraduate or graduate credit hours at a reduced tuition rate. The agreement provides higher education opportunities to SOWELA faculty and staff in reaching their academic goals.

With Northwestern State University’s vast online offerings, this partnership provides SOWELA’s employees with both affordable and accessible higher education opportunities,” said NSU President Dr. Jim Henderson.

“Louisiana has $60-80 billion in industrial expansion on the books and the vast majority will be in the Lake Charles area,” Henderson said. “We can partner with this institution and make sure they have faculty in place to support their mission. This is a necessary step to realizing the economic renaissance that is at our door step.”

“Community colleges and all higher education institutions are in the business of training students to go to work. We are all players in higher education and by partnering with NSU, we become even stronger,” said Dr. Neil Aspinwall, SOWELA chancellor. “This partnership will help with graduation, retention and with our faculty. Faculty and staff will have more opportunities for more training, which makes a better environment for our students.”

SOWELA faculty and staff must meet admission requirements at Northwestern State to enroll in courses with tuition waiver benefits.