Owatonna area students now have access to a four-year degree within their community.

Riverland Community College’s Owatonna campus has partnered with Milwaukee-based Cardinal Stritch University to make a “2+2” program available. Students can earn associate in arts or science in business from Riverland, and then transfer all of the credits to Stritch to finish a four-year degree in business management at the Owatonna campus. The program is available to anyone with the appropriate 50-credit prerequisites.

“This equal partnership will benefit not only the potential students, but also the community as a whole, offering companies the opportunity to advance their employees with no interruption to work flow while simultaneously building a sustainable community,” said Riverland business instructor Dr. Deb McManimon.

Riverland and Stritch will officially launch their partnership on April 10 at the Riverland Owatonna campus from 4-6 p.m. Those interested in learning more about the program and registering for classes starting in June may attend. To RSVP, call 763-548-1313, or email

registrations@eventshows.com.