The California Community Colleges Board of Governors announced Tuesday that 15 colleges around the state have tentatively been given the green light to offer bachelor”s degree programs at their institutions, however, Mendocino College wasn”t one of them.

The board action by the CCC is in response to legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown last year that allows up to 15 community college districts to set up pilot bachelor”s degree programs in fields of study not offered by the California State University or University of California, in hopes of filling the need for high demand technical jobs in California that require an upper-level degree at a minimum.

Those picked were chosen out of 34 applications, according to the chancellor”s office of California Community Colleges.

Jessica Silva, director of community relations and communication for Mendocino College, said the institution didn”t apply for consideration this time around, but is interested in possibly offering such programs to its students in the future.

“We are hoping to see how it goes for the other colleges,” Silva said.

One of the catches, Silva said, is that a community college has to offer bachelor”s degrees that other four-year-colleges or universities in the area don”t.

The CCC estimates the total cost of getting a bachelor”s degree at a participating community college would be significantly lower than a four-year university; somewhere around the $10,000 mark.

Any community college that lost out or didn”t apply for the first run has until the 2022-23 school year when the legislation is scheduled to switch off, the CCC said, adding that the governor could opt to renew the program after a review by the California Legislative Analyst”s Office.

Final approval of programs for the selected schools is expected by the CCC Board of Governors at its March meeting, the office said.

The colleges that were awarded a pilot program could have it up and running in time for the fall 2015 semester, which included fields such as dental hygiene, respiratory therapy, automotive technology and aerospace manufacturing technology.

“Ultimately, yes, we would like to offer four-year degrees, but there is no timeline right now on when that would happen,” Silva said.

Mendocino College currently offers 314 associate degree programs, and 13 certificate programs to students at four campus locations in Ukiah, Willits, Lakeport and Fort Bragg.