{"id":34339,"date":"2017-08-09T08:09:05","date_gmt":"2017-08-09T12:09:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=34339"},"modified":"2018-08-21T12:50:41","modified_gmt":"2018-08-21T16:50:41","slug":"breakfast-champions-heads-five-local-schools-speak-morning-meeting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2017\/breakfast-champions-heads-five-local-schools-speak-morning-meeting\/","title":{"rendered":"Breakfast of Champions: Heads of five local schools speak at morning meeting"},"content":{"rendered":"
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One school offers the continent\u2019s first graduate-level program in restorative justice. Another just started a new master\u2019s program for athletic training, and a third has added two health care courses to help prepare area residents for good jobs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Another is educating many locals who hold down jobs while enhancing their skills. And the largest of them all is striving to be the model of an engaged university.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The heads of James Madison, Eastern Mennonite and American National universities, and Bridgewater College and Blue Ridge Community College updated about 65 business leaders Tuesday morning about what\u2019s going on at their campuses during the annual Presidential Address, hosted by the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Speaking at the breakfast event for the first time, new EMU President Susan Huxman extolled the success of the school\u2019s 498 April graduates.<\/div>\n
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She said 98 percent of her university\u2019s 2017 graduates are employed, headed to graduate school or serving in volunteer roles. All of EMU\u2019s nursing graduates have jobs, as do nearly all of its teachers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cParents and prospective students understandably ask us, \u2018If I come to EMU, will I get a good job when I graduate?\u2019\u201d Huxman related to the crowd. \u201cOur data strongly suggests that they will. That is a testament to our superb faculty, the kinds of students we recruit, and the receptive economy, especially from employers right here in the Valley.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The university\u2019s first group of students to earn a master\u2019s degree in restorative justice, which she said is the only such program in North America, graduated last spring, and graduate programs in counseling, biomedicine and organizational leadership \u201care going gangbusters.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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EMU celebrates its centennial this year, and it will launch a doctoral program in nursing, its first at the doctoral level.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Changing With Times<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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Bridgewater College, President David Bushman said, began a master\u2019s program in June when it began providing graduate-level instruction in athletic training.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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While that\u2019s a first for a school that had only offered bachelor\u2019s degrees, Bushman said it won\u2019t be the last. Based on market research, the college is looking closely at starting graduate programs in digital media management, cybersecurity and other fields.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The move has raised questions from some about whether Bridgewater is trying to become the region\u2019s next JMU, but he said it\u2019s more a matter of changing with the times.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cOur mission is to serve the students in a way that\u2019s consistent, that prepares them for the world beyond college,\u201d Bushman said. \u201cAnd while that had been historically a baccalaureate degree in many, many fields, it\u2019s now at least a master\u2019s level.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cSo, in fact, we\u2019re not changing our mission. We\u2019re reaffirming our mission and making it responsive for the students who are here today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Along that line, he said freshmen coming to campus this month to be part of a student body of about 1,900 should be able to study in a new library by the time they graduate. Instead of being a book warehouse, the new John Kenny Forrer Learning Commons will be \u201ca workshop for learning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Wandile Maseko, director of American National University\u2019s local campus, highlighted new health care programs the for-profit institution has launched. The phlebotomy and electrocardiogram technology programs, he said, already are the school\u2019s most popular.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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ANU focuses on health care, business and information technology classes, he said. To that end, it\u2019s also added a certificate program for medical assistants with credits transferable to an associate degree program.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIf you know anything about the for-profit educational sector,\u201d said Maseko, \u201cyou know that a lot of institutions have closed or are in the process of shutting their doors. ANU is still here, and we remain committed to our students and this community.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Learning Differently<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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Of the institutions represented at the breakfast, President John Downey made the point that Blue Ridge Community College probably is as much a part of the community\u2019s fabric as any.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Blue Ridge, which turns 50 this year, trains many of the registered nurses who help local residents when they\u2019re sick and the veterinary technicians who provide care to sick pets. Its graduates are working in factories, driving trucks, repairing cars and airplanes, and operating local businesses.<\/div>\n
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Often, he noted, local workers are BRCC students. Eighty-two percent of those taking courses for credit are part-time students.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cAlmost all of them are working in your local businesses,\u201d Downey said, \u201ctaking advantage of the salaries you provide while they\u2019re struggling to get an education at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Nearly 5,600 people took classes for credit last year, he said. Another 3,000 to 4,000 took noncredit courses for workforce training.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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While BRCC is trying to meet the demands of some of the local workforce, James Madison University has a broader reach and is growing in other high-demand areas.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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President Jonathan Alger said science, technology, engineering, math, health care, cybersecurity and intelligence analysis are in-demand fields, as is education, a JMU staple since its founding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But learning, he said, is moving beyond memorization and even off campus. It\u2019s part of JMU\u2019s effort to be \u201cthe national model for the engaged university,\u201d which takes three forms, he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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One is engaged learning, which seeks to transform the way students think and learn. Alger said in every discipline, JMU is trying to get students involved in critical thinking, ethical reasoning, teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, resilience, and written and oral communication.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A second is community engagement. Whether it\u2019s operating the Gus Bus, an early childhood literacy effort; offering the Valley Scholars program, which gives select area children who would be first-generation college students mentoring and offers them a full scholarship if they maintain certain grades; or the Block Party in the \u2019Burg, an annual pilgrimage to downtown Harrisonburg to introduce students to local businesses, Alger said JMU wants its students making a difference.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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There\u2019s also civic engagement, which Alger said tries to impress upon students \u201ctheir responsibilities as citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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This year, he said, Madison begins hosting the newly created Virginia chapter of Campus Compact. The national organization works to encourage community and civic engagement on all college and university campuses.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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