Albright College to Offer Accelerated Degree Programs in Mesa, Arizona

Albright College will begin offering classes in Mesa, Ariz., this fall, becoming the first out-of-state institution to open its doors as part of the city’s initiative to bring more higher education options to the region.

Through Albright’s Accelerated Degree Completion Program, the College will offer bachelor’s degree programs in organizational behavior/applied psychology, business administration and information systems to working adults.

Last year Mesa contacted several small, private colleges and universities across the country to solicit proposals for degree programs that would augment the offerings of the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and Maricopa Community Colleges. To date, the city has signed memoranda of understanding with two other institutions besides Albright.

The agreement with Albright, announced today, makes the College the only school eligible to offer classes in the Fall 2012 semester and the first to offer adult accelerated programs. Mesa City Council is scheduled to vote on the proposal May 17.

“This opportunity is a perfect fit for Albright College and for the City of Mesa,” said Albright President Lex O. McMillan III, Ph.D. “The College has been educating working adults for 15 years and has earned a reputation for rigorous academics and a flexible, adaptable curriculum. Our new degree offerings in Mesa well match the areas the city is seeking to leverage.”

Mesa is one of four cities that received grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the National League of Cities to fund innovative proposals to boost college completion rates. Under that funding, Mesa Counts on College, a partnership among the city, Mesa Public Schools and Mesa Community College, seeks to double the number of low-income youth who complete college or a certificate program within the next 10 years.

“We are eager to work with the Mesa Counts on College initiative to bring the unique benefits of an Albright education to the young adults of the region,” said President McMillan. “We have also signed an articulation agreement with Maricopa Community Colleges to grant students easier access to the Albright Mesa program.”

For at least 2012-13, Albright-Mesa will be housed in the Mesa Financial Plaza, 1201 South Alma School Road. The program will be moved to the Mesa Center for Higher Education, 245 West 2nd Street, with convenient access to downtown Mesa from Phoenix, Tempe and Scottsdale via highway and light rail, no later than the fall of 2014.

Original source here.