Walker might complete college degree

Calling it the "21st century face of the Wisconsin Idea," University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly on Wednesday announced that UW-Milwaukee would offer four new "flexible option" degree programs in the fall that will allow adult students to earn credits online at their own speed using knowledge learned anywhere, be it a classroom, on the job, in a free online lecture or in the military....

It's competency based, not classroom based," said UW System spokesman David Giroux. As soon as students display competence in an area, using assessments developed by UW System professors, they can pass through to the next stage.

The new offerings — bachelor's degrees in nursing, diagnostic imaging and information science, a master's in nursing and a certificate in professional and technical communication — are the first in an expected wave of flexible degree offerings. They are intended to make university degrees more accessible to the estimated 750,000 adults in Wisconsin who have some college experience but no degree, which can stall professional advancement.,,

Walker, who noted he doesn't have a college degree and might eventually get one through the online program, repeated his support for them on Wednesday and said he'd like to expand the offerings to other professional fields.