Frederick Campus: Name Change Seeks to Eliminate Confusion

THE DIVISION OF Graduate, Professional and Continuing Education receives questions on a nearly daily basis from people who are confused about the division’s offerings and role. The division’s Associate Provost Jennifer Staiger, Ph.D., has led faculty, administrators, staff, students and others in discussions designed to clarify the division’s name.

Starting in July, the unit’s new name will be the Division of Continuing Studies, and it will house the Graduate School at the Mount, Center for Accelerated and Adult Undergraduate Education, and Center for Lifelong Learning.

Within the Graduate School at the Mount are graduate programs in biotechnology, business administration, health administration, sport management, education, teaching and applied behavior analysis. In 2024, the university hopes to begin offering a graduate physician assistant program (see page 8).

The Center for Adult and Accelerated Undergraduate Education will include accelerated undergraduate degree programs in business, accounting, communication, history, entrepreneurship, criminal justice and human services as well as adult learning programs in special education and education.

The Center for Lifelong Learning will be the umbrella for both credit and noncredit programs. Credit programs include certificate and high school dual enrollment programs, and noncredit programs encompass professional development, college preparation, mindfulness, Catholic education and certification offerings.

Most of these programs are located both online and at the university’s Frederick campus, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2019.