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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- In a move to save money and reduce duplicated services, the state Board of Regents has voted to merge two eastern Utah colleges.
A merger between the College of Eastern Utah and the Southeast Applied Technology College comes after a study of each school's purpose, services and finances.
"Both institutions are doing a good job, but both are dramatically underfunded," Richard Kendell, Utah higher education commissioner, said Friday. "This is a challenged part of the state. The needs are real, the population is declining and the money is tight."
But the proposal irks some technology college stakeholders, including Douglas Holmes, acting chairman of the Utah College of Applied Technology board.
Holmes said the board feels "puzzled, concerned, upset," and was overlooked during the merger study process. He said he fears the merger is the first of many that will allow technology schools to be swallowed up by the state's community colleges.
"The ATCs really, really don't want to be community colleges," Holmes said. "They want to be technical colleges."
Technical colleges in Utah provide training for machinists, automobile technicians, carpenters and medical technicians. Many of the students are older, returning for training after halting their education early in life. Opponents of the merger say they fear these students won't fit in the traditional community college environment.
Kendell said none of the technology school's programs will be lost, nor will funding disappear.
Regents asked officials from the two schools to work out a merger agreement by Dec. 31.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
