Susan Whitney/The Gazette University of Maryland, College Park business professor Mark Wellman (left) visits with Justin Zerrenner of Gaithersburg (center) and Chetna Sinha of Germantown at a recent celebration for graduating students.

That may be the mantra of students and faculty at the Universities at Shady Grove, the University System of Maryland's extension in Montgomery County.

The center is the only place in the county where students can complete a public four-year degree, and it has become home to a small, highly diverse group of students who have come to the university for its convenient location and small class sizes.

Last week, students, families, faculty, university officials and county leaders celebrated the undergraduate degrees that nearly 300 students will receive from their home institutions later this month. That is a quantum leap from the 36 students who earned degrees from the Shady Grove center last year.

"These are students who would not otherwise have an opportunity for a degree program," said Stewart L. Edelstein, executive director of the center.

More than one-quarter of the students at Shady Grove are married, and nearly all of them work full-time -- situations that would make it difficult to attend the University of Maryland, College Park and impossible to enroll farther away, Edelstein said.

And Shady Grove has become a haven for the county's rapidly increasing minority population. Twenty-two percent of students enrolled in day classes are Asian; 20 percent are African American; and 9 percent are Hispanic. Sixty-eight percent are women, and the average age is 28.

Abhi Kumar, 24, who moved to Montgomery County from India five years ago, will receive a bachelor's degree in information systems this month. He said he chose USG because it is five miles from his home.

In fact, nearly 80 percent of USG's students live in the county, most of them in Rockville and Gaithersburg. Sixty percent transfer from Montgomery College.

Karen Canfield, 23, is earning a double major in international business and marketing. She said she chose USG for its smaller setting and because the professors treat her like a person, not a Social Security number.

Faculty interact with students on several levels, including recruiting and advising, said John Kapp, program director for the biology program offered by the College Park campus.

"Some students want a big campus with lots of activities and diversions," Kapp said. But with the demands of work and family, he said, USG students are more focused on academics and completing their degrees.

Day courses at Shady Grove began three years ago with 230 students. This year, more than 750 students are enrolled in undergraduate daytime courses, and nearly 1,500 students took evening undergraduate or graduate courses.

Although that is a fraction of the 25,000 undergraduates at the University of Maryland, College Park, the number of USG's daytime students is projected to nearly double over the next two years.

University officials say Shady Grove is a unique way to offer college degrees in areas without a traditional campus.

Eight of the university system's 11 institutions offer courses and degree programs at Shady Grove. Students enroll at the university that offers the degree they want to earn and take junior, senior and some graduate level courses in Rockville.

The goal is to help students get jobs or move up in their career fields, Edelstein said, so courses have been tailored to the county's employment needs. Most students are earning degrees in business and information systems, nursing and education.

"The model is an important aspect of the future of higher education," said William E. Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland.

With skyrocketing enrollments at the state's colleges and universities, there is no way that demand can be met without creative solutions, Kirwan said.

The Shady Grove model can be replicated in other parts of the state, he said, adding that a center is being planned for the Hagerstown area, and could also work in Southern Maryland.

"This is a cost-efficient, high-quality way to extend the reach of the institution," Kirwan said.