Fall semester has begun at Willamette and suddenly the campus is buzzing again. Summer is deceptively peaceful on campus, but many faculty and staff have been working hard on projects aimed at building a bigger, broader — and one might even say bolder — Willamette University.
First and foremost is the arrival in Salem of the initial students and faculty from the Claremont School of Theology, following the formal affiliation of CST with Willamette last spring. Three CST faculty are in residence this year (in the MICAH Building, between the Hallie Ford Museum and the First United Methodist Church) along with a small number of full-time students, and several additional faculty are visiting biweekly or monthly. Two dozen additional students are currently on campus for an intensive week of their hybrid-online MDiv program.
Also this past summer, faculty from both AGSM and the CLA have worked with Deans Mike Hand and Ruth Feingold to develop curricular plans for new programs in computer and data sciences, following the Board of Trustees’ approval last spring. New majors to be launched over the next year by a cross-school “Committee of Studies” include a BS in Computer Science, a BS in Data Science, and an MS in Data Science. A joint degree pathway that combines a BS and MS in Data Science in four years (including a summer internship) has been proposed.
And finally, this semester marks the official launch of our new undergraduate minor in business. Both introductory sections this semester, taught by AGSM Professor Debra Ringold, are at capacity. With a record number of students already choosing our "gold standard" 3/2 BA/MBA program, this new minor gives broader access to AGSM to any CLA student in any major who is interested in an introduction to business, not-for-profit, or governmental management.
Thank you for your continued support of Willamette. Your involvement is helping us to move Willamette in a bold new direction as we define what it means to be the Northwest's leading private university.
Go Bearcats!
Steve
