NIU is keeping educational opportunities alive in the western suburbs by agreeing to cooperate with the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and other schools.

Although some might think U of I has jumped into the DuPage County area with hopes of taking “business” away from NIU, that doesn’t appear to be the case or even be possible.

It seems as though the potential students in the western suburbs, which covers a wide range of people, will only benefit from the presence of two major universities.

NIU Provost Kendall Baker said more than 70 percent of students who already attend state universities are from the western suburbs.

He also was correct in saying that potential students in the area are of a typical college age and could benefit greatly from having courses from two major universities within commuting distance.

The two universities working together also will help take some of the pressure off of NIU, and will allow NIU to concentrate on its specialties, like computer science, and U of I might be able to supplement some of NIU’s weak spots.

The NIU and U of I joint venture has a lot to offer the western suburbs as long as the relationship is kept on a supplementary level. And since NIU is already earning a substantial amount of money in the area, it only makes sense to continue the program and improve upon it.