ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 4, 1996 TAG: 9604040073
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: VIRGINIA EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ALLISON BLAKE STAFF WRITER
Campus rumor mills churn quickly, and by Tuesday, Virginia Western Community College had received 64 student inquiries about the latest: Were four-year business degrees really going to be offered?
The answer is yes. For the second time in less than a year, Radford University has boosted Roanoke's skimpy public higher education offerings.
The community college and the university signed an agreement Tuesday to launch four-year degree programs in accounting and management this fall.
The business programs will be added to the institutions' other joint offerings: programs in media studies, nursing, criminal justice and social work. Students earn two-year degrees at the community college before transferring to Radford to complete the final two years of their degrees - without ever leaving the Virginia Western campus.
"This is a continuation of a philosophy that we have developed in cooperation with the community," said Mark Emick, assistant to the president at Virginia Western. "Public, four-year programming permits citizens the opportunity to obtain a bachelor's degree without having to leave Roanoke or disrupt their careers ...''
Radford professors will teach the Virginia Western courses, which will be scheduled in the late afternoon or evening to accommodate people who work during the day. On April 11, information sessions about the new programs will be held at the community college's Nicely Center.
Norfolk's Old Dominion University offers the only other public, four-year programs in Roanoke: two engineering technology programs taught via television. In all, 200 students attend the two universities' Virginia Western programs.
The new business programs are nationally accredited at the associate's and bachelor's degree levels, said Bruce Blaylock, dean of Radford's business college.
"I think it's important to know this is something we didn't just dream up," Blaylock said. "It's based on consumer demand: We've learned the Roanoke Valley needs access to business [programs]."
The announcement comes as Roanoke continues its efforts to boost public higher education in the city, even as Radford views Roanoke as an increasingly valuable market.
"The Roanoke Valley is the largest community in Virginia that does not now have a public, four-year program," said state Sen. John Edwards, D-Roanoke.
The recently recessed General Assembly approved $125,000 to help pay for the Radford-Virginia Western partnerships and $200,000 in planning money for the possible conversion of a former Norfolk Southern Corp. office building near the Hotel Roanoke into a higher education center.
An architectural and engineering study will be launched, Edwards said. Also, the choice of programs to house in the building will be examined, from those now offered at the community college campus to those at the Roanoke Graduate Center.
Legislators also voted to give Virginia Western $500,000 to finish renovating its fine arts building, which will house the bachelor's degree classes, Emick said.
Studies show that colleges' growth market of the future will be older, working students. With its own enrollment reduced by more than 700 full- and part-time students since 1992, Radford is retrenching to serve those students in the Roanoke area.
"One of my highest priorities as president of Radford is to extend the university's programs and services into the Roanoke community and throughout the Roanoke Valley," said President Douglas Covington, who arrived at the campus in June.
"This means we are committed to do more off-campus programs, making sure that we do our homework and do the surveys to offer programs that are needed, that are relevant, knowing the market and what people need and want."
LENGTH: Medium: 72 linesby CNB