Santa Maria residents hoping to get a bachelor’s degree at home are in luck.
Laurus College, a family-owned private college established in 2006, is now offering four bachelor’s degrees in business systems management, digital arts and computer animation, information technologies and network systems, and web design and development.
The programs, which were already offered by Laurus as associate degrees, were accredited as bachelor’s degrees in June, according to President Wayne Neale. The accreditation process was intensive, Neale said, and included extensive instructor, policy, and procedure evaluations, site visits, and various reports.
Neale said Laurus College now has roughly 40 students enrolled in its four bachelor’s programs, and additional students are welcome to enroll again in August.
The decision to offer bachelor’s degrees came at the request of local students and employers, Neale said. Higher education options are limited in many Central Coast communities, Neale said, and not all residents have the means to move or commute to cities that host four-year universities.
“We wanted to offer this to give people the chance to extend their education and the opportunity to get employed,” Neale told the Sun.
Although Laurus College has campuses in Santa Maria, Oxnard, San Luis Obispo, and Atascadero, its classes are entirely conducted online via live video feed. Students can interact with their professors online, go on campus for additional support, or watch class recordings throughout the day.
The Laurus model, Neale said, was designed to give its students–many of whom are working adults with families and full-time jobs–more flexibility throughout the day. With its new bachelor’s programs, Neale said the school hopes to give locals even more higher education opportunities.
“We’re just trying to get the word out and let people know that there is this local option that fits with their lifestyle,” Neale said, “and they don’t have to move away from their homes and their families if that’s not what they want to do.”
This article appears in Jul 19-26, 2018.