PROVIDENCE – In her annual address Thursday updating the current state of Johnson & Wales University, JWU Chancellor Mim L. Runey announced the university’s new 10-year strategic plan for building on the educational experience at JWU.
The plan’s first step is rebranding and restructuring the university’s online degree program.
JWU has formally changed the name of its College of Online Education and it is now known as the Johnson & Wales University College of Professional Studies. The name change, JWU said, is the marquee initiative of the Powered By Purpose 2024 initiative, the first three-year phase of the university’s 10-year “Powered By” strategic plan.
JWU spokesperson Katherine Hypolite-MacMannis in an email Thursday to PBN said repositioning the College of Professional Studies goes beyond rebranding. Through the college, JWU will expand training partnerships with employers and provide students with industry-responsive programs, Hypolite-MacMannis said.
The university said that the College of Professional Studies will offer 100% online undergraduate and graduate degrees to students, as well as develop a professional training division, and streamline admission and advising support for graduate students taking classes in-person at the Providence campus. JWU said students who are newly enrolled or continuing education with the College of Professional Studies can access in-person evening courses through the spring, and the full transition to online will take place in the fall of 2022.
Hypolite-MacMannis said the college has forged a number of partnerships with employers, specifically through Guild Education. With the partnership, she said JWU is launching an online culinary certificate and associate’s degree programs. She also said more programs will be developed through collaboration with industry leaders and JWU’s traditional colleges.
Last year, JWU’s College of Online Education had 2,152 students taking online courses, according to research by Providence Business News.
JWU said growing demand for online education is a primary reason for the College of Professional Studies going fully online. The shift, the university said, will allow for increased access to affordable higher education and expanding into new service areas.
The college was also created in its online-only form because of an increased demand for professional education, Hypolite-MacMannis said. “The economy is changing rapidly and employers and employees recognize the need for high-quality professional education,” she said. “CPS will be able to serve professionals wherever they are and maintain the high standards we aspire to reach in all of our programs.”
Hypolite-MacMannis also said JWU will, through its decade-long plan, offer a diverse range of academic programming, support more faculty, scholarships and research.
“We want to build on our strengths,” Hypolite-MacMannis said. “A decade from now, we want to be recognized just as much for entrepreneurship, innovation, research, and health care as we are right now for food and hospitality.”
“Over the years, we have seen firsthand the impact purpose-driven education and training has on the lives and livelihoods of working adults,” JWU College of Professional Studies Vice President Cindy Parker said in a statement. “By furthering our commitment to flexible online learning, CPS will help countless students reach their goals and achieve success, which will positively reverberate through communities both near and far.”
Runey said the 10-year plan builds on JWU’s past strategic plans and sets various goals on student and faculty retention, and institutional efficiency.
“As we emerge from the global pandemic, this is the perfect time for us to look forward and set new goals to position JWU for a stronger and more vibrant future in the rapidly changing higher education landscape,” Runey said.
Update: Adds comments throughout from JWU spokesperson Katherine Hypolite-MacMannis.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
