College in Cleveland offers three-year degree

CLEVELAND (AP) — A women’s college in Cleveland is joining a small but growing number of schools offering a three-year bachelor’s degree program to appeal to cost-conscious students.

Ursuline College says the tuition will cost the same as attending the school for four years, but students will save on room and board.

The fast-track program will be restricted to early childhood and special-education majors. It will launch in the 2010-2011 school year.

A handful of colleges have begun offering three-year degree programs, an idea trumpeted by U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, a former education secretary and college president. During a speech earlier this year, he called three-year programs the higher-education equivalent of a fuel-efficient car.