FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
URBANA/TROY, Ohio (June 23, 2009) - On Tuesday afternoon, June 23, at the Troy City Hall Council Chambers, a gathering of leaders from the City of Troy and Urbana University announced the formation of a new partnership that will provide opportunities for long-term, significant outcomes for both the local community and the University. Speaking at this ýpartnership kick-offý was Mayor Michael Beamish, City of Troy; President Stephen Jones, Urbana University; Chuck Cochran, president, Troy Development Council; and Tom Dunn, superintendent, Troy City Schools. Also making comments were Ron Musilli, chairman, Troy Development Council; Dr. Thomas Oates, senior vice president, Academic Affairs, Urbana University; and Dr. Jim Daniel, professor of education at Urbana University.
As part of the announcement, Mayor Beamish indicated that it has been an ongoing goal of the City of Troy to have a four-year university as part of the Troy community. He said that having such an institution and the educational services it would bring was critical to future success for the local community and economy. In fact, he believes that ýthis could be a model for how communities and higher education institutions can take charge of their own future success in challenging economic times.ý
In the early part of this year, Dr. Stephen Jones, president of Urbana University and other members of his senior staff met with local leaders in Troy to begin a conversation on the possibility of the University becoming a ýhometown universityý for the residents in the Miami County area.
On March 26, a contingent from Troy visited the Urbana University campus and met with faculty and staff to explore the educational possibilities for their residents. In his introductory remarks, President Jones stressed the importance of ý[the University administration] listening; not already ýknowingý the needs of the Troy community. ýIt is together that we develop and commit to programs that meet your needs, in your community.ý
It is because of this commitment and the months of work and collaboration between the University and community leaders that this exciting partnership has begun. This fall, Urbana University will be offering two graduate programs; a master in business administration (MBA) and master in education in classroom teaching (M.Ed.). The courses will be taught in Troy by University faculty and made available to all residents from Troy and surrounding communities. University officials anticipate expanding local educational services as these are identified.
This partnership will also enable the Troy Plan for Economic Education, a previously successful, award-winning program, to be offered again with support from the Troy Development Council and the Troy City Schools. The Troy Plan (two economic courses) will be made available to local educators to take as ýstand aloneý courses or as part of the MBA or M.Ed. programs. The focus will be on national, state, and local economic issues that affect the business and education communities.
ýBack in February, at the Troy Development Councilýs (TDC) annual meeting, one of the people in the audience said,ýýthe only thing Troy needs now is a four-year university with a graduate studies program.ý ýWhile I wanted to stand up and announce what we had been working on this for several months, we were just not quite readyýtoday, we are,ý said Ron Musilli, chairman of the board of the TDC.
Competing in a world economy requires a community to have numerous aspects of business recruitment in place before even being considered for a companyýs possible location. One of the items that rank right at the top of the criteria list is the workforce. Not only must a community have people available to work, but more importantly, those people must have the requisite work skills. While many of those skills can be learned in the normal public education system or in a vocational/technical training environment or even a community collegeýthe continually changing skill requirements, many times, demands post-secondary or graduate degreesýand this is where Troy has been at a disadvantage.
ýBeginning this September, Troy will have the entire spectrum of education opportunitiesýnot only can we provide advanced training for our young people, but we can support those who need mid-career skills enhancement,ýand we can respond positively to those prospective business re-location opportunities that require ongoing training programs for their future employees,ý noted Chuck Cochran, president of the TDC.
ýWe in the Troy City School system are excited about working with Urbana University. It not only brings quality post-secondary educational opportunities to our graduates in a local environment, but equally important, provides that education at a cost that makes a college education available to more of our students,ý stated Tom Dunn, superintendent of Troy City Schools.
Those interested in applying for the MBA or M.Ed. graduate programs may apply on line at the Urbana University web site, www.urbana.edu or may contact Ruth Snow, assistant director, Graduate Studies at 937-484-1256. Financial aid will be available to those applicants who qualify.
For further information or to apply to the Troy Plan for Economic Education, please contact Tom Dunn, superintendent, Troy City Schools, at 937-332-6700 or Chuck Cochran, President, Troy Development Council, at 937-339-7809.
Contact:
Christina Bruun-Horrigan
Urbana University
Director of University Relations and Governmental Affairs
937-484-1354
Fax: 937- 484-1322
Email: cbruunhorrigan@urbana.edu
Web site: www.urbana.edu