Pacific’s Eugene Campus Moves to Lane Community College Grounds
Pacific University’s Eugene Campus is now located in the Center for Meeting and Learning on the main campus of Lane Community College in Eugene, fulfilling a partnership announced last fall to offer students in the southern Willamette Valley expanded access to higher education and career preparation.
The unique arrangement between the private college and public community colleges allows both institutions to expand pathways for students from community college to advanced degrees and career licensure. LCC students will be able to transition from associate degree programs into bachelor’s programs, such as Pacific’s undergraduate-level elementary teacher licensure and ESOL endorsement program, and even Pacific’s master of social work program.
Meanwhile, the new location expands the services available to Pacific University students, who will have access to resources like the LCC library, computer labs, fitness center, and food services.
“Pacific University and Lane Community College have very similar missions and a shared focus on promoting student success in a diverse, sustainable, and supportive environment,” Pacific President Lesley Hallick said last fall, upon signing a partnership agreement with LCC. “This partnership will mean that more people in the Lane County area will be able to access Pacific’s personal, nurturing learning environment and find pathways to success and meaningful careers.”
“Hosting Pacific University on LCC’s main campus will bring a baccalaureate education to our students and make it easier for them to pursue advanced education and training,” LCC President Margaret Hamilton added in the fall. “Having a university presence on our campus strengthens our mutual goal of making higher education more accessible for all students, while making the education continuum more transparent.”
The move comes amid the 25th anniversary of Pacific’s Eugene Campus, where it offers undergraduate- and graduate-level teacher preparation programs, as well as a master of social work program. Over the past quarter-century, about 2,000 people have earned degrees at Pacific’s Eugene Campus, many of whom continue to serve in local schools and community organizations.
Though the Lane Community College campus is currently closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pacific expects to launch its summer- and fall-start programs on time with adaptations.
Pacific University is a comprehensive university with four campuses in Oregon, including Forest Grove, Eugene, Hillsboro, and Woodburn. It serves more than 3,900 students with undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs in the arts and sciences, business, education, health professions, and optometry.
Lane Community College provides comprehensive, accessible, quality, learning-centered educational opportunities including transfer courses and more than 40 career and technical programs to 25,000 students a year. Classes are offered at six locations across Lane County in a 5,000-square-mile area stretching from the Pacific to the Cascades, plus hundreds of online courses. Lane is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.