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LEADING UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE PROGRAMS

FAIRFIELD COUNTY BUSINESS JOURNAL | WESTCHESTER COUNTY BUSINESS JOURNAL | FEBRUARY 8, 2021

JACK WELCH COLLEGE OF BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY FOR WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION

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he Jack Welch College of Business & Technology at Sacred Heart University (SHU) provides a host of relevant undergraduate and graduate programs that equip students with a unique blend of timely skills and state-of-the-art technological experience steeped in the Catholic intellectual tradition. Wisely integrating technology into its business programs and vice versa, the Welch College of Business & Technology has implemented a top-to-bottom digital transformation in recent years, complete with a range of world-class learning labs, exciting and meaningful study abroad programs and flexible, dual-degree possibilities perfect for both the undergrad student and working professionals looking to become leaders in today’s global economy, said Dean Martha J. Crawford, Ph.D. “Other schools are talking about it,” she said of the multifaceted focus, “but we are very aggressively going in that direction.”

The Welch College of Business & Technology provides much more than the requirements that lead to a traditional business degree or MBA. The college educates leaders to make a positive contribution to the community by nurturing ethical reasoning skills, an entrepreneurial mindset, data and technology literacy and global perspectives through student-focused teaching, experiential learning and impactful research.

Primarily housed on the university’s west campus, formerly home to General Electric’s international headquarters, the college offers nine advanced degree programs, including an MBA, master’s degrees in business analytics, digital marketing and human resources management and a Doctorate of Business Administration in finance, for about 600 graduate students.

Another 1,800 undergrads enjoy a range of programs from accounting and finance to management and marketing.

Undergraduates may also take advantage of the popular study-abroad program in Dingle, Ireland, while MBA candidates have been honing their skills at the Luxembourg campus since 1991.

The Welch College of Business & Technology also houses the School of Computer Science & Engineering, which offers undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs in cutting-edge fields such as game development, cybersecurity and database design – all led by industry-savvy professionals who understand the needs and demands of today’s workplace.

Synergy is encouraged between business and technology and dual-degree programs in disciplines such as computer science and

A student works outside of the Finance Lab at Sacred Heart University’s West Campus. Photo by Mark F. Conrad.

Dean Martha Crawford: Sacred Heart University’s Jack Welch College of Business & Technology Dean Martha J. Crawford, Ph.D. Photo by Don Hamerman.

The Artificial Intelligence Lab at Sacred Heart University’s Jack Welch College of Business & Technology.

Photo by Tracy Deer-Mirek

Aerial view of West Campus. Photo by Sean Kaschak.

finance are available. In addition, the availability of the school’s labs for local corporations, startups and nonprofits fosters an authentic spirit of collaboration that involves local business leaders and SHU students and results in vibrant internship, recruiting and networking opportunities.

The university campus boasts a host of new learning labs tailormade to replicate the types of work situations Welch students will encounter in the real world, including iHub, an innovative coworking space in partnership with Verizon. The space caters to the burgeoning innovation community, drawing SHU faculty, staff and students in an academic-focused environment that attracts local startups, entrepreneurs, corporations and other forward-thinking organizations and individuals. SHU’s state-of-the-art Student Concierge Service allows members to make vital connections with various university programs, internships, recruiting, events, speaker sessions, office hours and mentoring.

“The iHub is part of the innovation ecosystem that we are building at our west campus,” said Rupendra Paliwal, provost and vice president of academic affairs at Sacred Heart University. “Companies and entrepre-

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neurs that become members of iHub will have access to our faculty experts, student talents and state-of-the-art labs and facilities from wide-ranging disciplines to help them in various facets of business. Students will have an immersive learning experience with real projects right here on the campus. The iHub will further support a differentiated and distinctive SHU education.”

In addition, Welch students regularly use the IDEA Lab, an 11,000-square-foot prototyping lab capable of desktop and commercial 3D printing, laser cutting, CNC systems and motion capture for robots and drones; an Artificial Intelligence Lab with 40 computers with dedicated servers and object recognition equipment; a Cybersecurity Lab where students collaborate on cyber threat simulations and design responses and defense strategies; a Finance Lab with 13 Bloomberg financial terminals and an LCD ticker-tape display of real-time market information from the NASDAQ and New York Stock Exchange; and a Student Incubator Space with technical and advisory support for a growing group of student-led startups.

With an eye to the evolving and globally focused nature of business, the college

caters to both traditional and nontraditional undergrad and graduate students with degree programs that work for working adults. More than 60 percent of graduate students hold full-time jobs.

Once again named among the nation’s outstanding business schools for a master’s degree in business administration by The Princeton Review, the Welch program emphasizes experiential learning and technology literacy and helps students develop an international perspective, through digital integration of the Fairfield and Luxembourg campuses.

The Welch College’s Catholic tradition informs its emphasis on positive social impact. Founded in 2002, the college’s Center for Nonprofits gives MBA students opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills while assisting not-for-profits in achieving their goals and servicing the greater needs of the community. Students make a valuable contribution addressing nonprofits’ longterm viability and effectiveness while gaining real-world experience.

In addition, the college publishes the biannual New England Journal of Entrepreneurship as an invaluable forum for exchange of scholarly ideas, practices and policies in entrepreneurship and smallbusiness management.

Located in bustling Fairfield just off the Merritt Parkway, the Welch College is well situated for the plethora of internships, careers and mentoring and networking opportunities to be found in Fairfield and Westchester counties and New York City.

The Jack Welch College of Business & Technology is named for the legendary General Electric CEO Jack Welch and business courses are taught in his tradition and spirit. The college is among fewer than 10% worldwide that have earned accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

The Luxembourg program is the only AACSB-accredited MBA program in that county. This exclusive designation signifies the quality and merit of the college’s business curriculum. It is awarded after a rigorous evaluation and requires colleges to meet the highest level of standards for schools and colleges of business.

For further information on the Jack Welch College of Business & Technology, please contact Nadene Koliopoulos, director of graduate programs, koliopoulosn@ sacredheart.edu, 203-365-7660 or Paul Rychlik, director of graduate admissions, gradstudies@sacredheart.edu, 203-3657619.

GRADUATE PROGRAMS OPEN HOUSE Join us for one of our virtual Open Houses to learn more about beginning your graduate studies!

JOIN US!

Have you been considering pursuing a graduate degree in the near future?

Are you ready to take your passion to the next level, but are unsure what the next step is?

Join one of our upcoming virtual Open Houses to learn more. www.sacredheart.edu/gradopenhouse Saturday, March 6th at 10 A.M. College of Health Professions and the Davis & Henley College of Nursing Sunday, March 7th at 10 A.M College of Arts & Sciences, School of Communication, Media & the Arts and the School of Social Work Welch College of Business & Technology and the School of Computer Science & Engineering Thursday, March 11 at 6:30 P.M. Farrington College of Education

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Best Kept Secret: Community Colleges Deliver Affordable, Customized Employee Training care, hospitality, industrial goods, manufacturing, technology and utility industries, to name a few.

“By responding quickly with highquality, customized solutions to employers’ most pressing workforce training and education needs, Norwalk, Housatonic and Gateway Community Colleges are becoming the go-to employee training resources among Connecticut’s business community,” said Kristina Testa-Buzzee, Ed.D., chief regional workforce development officer for the Shoreline West Region. “Employers are benefitting from increased employee productivity, stronger teams and a better bottom line.”

WHERE TO BEGIN

Any firm looking to improve operations, increase efficiencies, improve recruitment and retention, or optimize performance, need look no further than community college contract training - a secret weapon in staying competitive.

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ecognizing that it often takes additional learning for workers to fulfill the roles they’re hired to perform, community colleges throughout our region are expanding their employee training services to help employers fill the skills gap.

If the term “Contract Training” is new to you, welcome to effective employee training that is affordable, customizable and ondemand. In short, contract training is when a business, industry, nonprofit organization, municipality or government agency contracts with a community college to provide training and education to its employees.

Employers work directly with community colleges to ‘upskill’ their existing employees with the practical training they need to perform effectively on the job. For the colleges, the service is a natural, as providing employee training perfectly aligns with their mission of economic and workforce development.

Norwalk, Housatonic and Gateway Community Colleges can develop and deliver customized workforce training programs and certification courses for employers throughout the state. Community colleges are professionals at advancing economic growth through skills training, and for the

last five years that has included contract training to meet the unique employee development needs of Connecticut’s workforce.

CONVENIENT FULL-SERVICE RESOURCES The benefits to employers abound. With locations in our backyard, instructors that are industry experts and prices that smash those of traditional corporate training programs, companies and organizations large and small are turning to our region’s community colleges as their new employee training team. The colleges make training available when and where firms need it, with courses delivered either online or inperson, at their workplace location or at the colleges themselves.

Whether the priority is improving people skills, leadership development or technical knowhow, employers are discovering that our region’s community colleges provide certifications and training that meet their needs. Some of the most popular training areas offered include customer service, human resources, information technology/ computers, finance, leadership and management development, ethical and legal issues, Quickbooks/bookkeeping, health care, safety and security/OSHA, manufac-

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turing, STEM training, ESL and more.

“When it comes to workforce training, our community colleges are designed to be responsive and flexible partners in preparing the regional workforce with customized, industry-specific training,” said Thomas G. Coley, Ph.D., president of the Shoreline West region, which encompasses Housatonic, Norwalk and Gateway Community Colleges.

“Our ability to work closely with multiple industries, particularly health care, manufacturing, finance, technology and business, allows us to provide affordable and targeted training that keeps the current workforce updated with the latest competencies and the emerging workforce prepared to enter into jobs in high-demand fields.”

GET RESULTS A wide variety of employers throughout Connecticut are already benefitting, including Fortune 500 corporations, small and mid-sized businesses, nonprofits, state and federal agencies, unions and workforce development agencies. The community colleges have trained hundreds of employees of every level in the aerospace, consumer goods, retail, electronics, food and beverage, government, health

Each discussion about contract training begins the same way – the colleges listen to business and industry. Their philosophy: getting employees the training they need to succeed is a collaborative effort between a firm and the college. They understand that every organization’s training challenge is unique and that by learning those specific needs, they can quickly develop a targeted, successful solution. And they do it affordably.

Whether a workforce is 10 or 10,000 employees, the community colleges offer special rates to help firms realize their vision of a well-trained, productive workforce. They work with budgets of every size to find the best solution to employers’ specific challenges. In addition, for workers that want professional enrichment and an opportunity to grow in their careers, the colleges work with employers’ tuition reimbursement programs.

Our community colleges are poised to expand their service offerings and welcome the opportunity to serve Connecticut’s employers. Any firm looking to improve operations, increase efficiencies, improve recruitment and retention, or optimize performance, need look no further than community college contract training – a secret weapon in staying competitive.

Contact Kristina Testa-Buzzee, Ed.D., chief regional workforce development officer for the Shoreline West Region of Connecticut Community Colleges via email at KTesta-Buzzee@commnet.edu or call 203-332-5156 to learn more about how contract training with Norwalk, Housatonic and Gateway Community Colleges can help your organization. For communities outside of these service areas, Kristina will put you in contact with an appropriate colleague.