University Studies is a multidisciplinary, student-focused, student-friendly department that offers two successful academic programs: the Integrative Studies bachelor's degree (INTS) and the Leadership Studies Certificate program. The INTS degree provides students with the flexibility to custom design a curriculum to meet their personal, educational, and career goals. The Leadership Studies Certificate helps students develop a competitive edge in the pursuit of their chosen careers.
When asked about the department’s plan for growth and advancement, Casey replied, “Our main goal must be to develop our Leadership Certificate into an undergraduate degree program. We have the courses, the students, the faculty, and the infrastructure in place to make this happen.” The numbers are impressive; more than 300 students participate in the program, and this number is growing. The department has begun the process of seeking curricular approval for the proposed degree.
“Our faculty and staff are experts in a number of disciplines, including Leadership Studies, English, Math, Psychology and Statistics. We have found it to be extremely beneficial to our department for our faculty to be multidisciplinary,” Casey proudly stated. Although there are several staff members who contribute to the success of the department, Paulette Black stands out. Black is the senior staff member of the department and knows everyone well. “She is an ethical leader in her own right. In my opinion, she represents us with distinction and value, training, delegating, and setting a
high bar for other staff members to follow. She would not want this mantle but carries it anyway.”
Effective July 1 of this year, University Studies will officially be renamed the Department of Leadership and Integrative Studies. Casey notes that the decision to change the department name was twofold. “First, there were obvious changes as a result of consolidation and reorganization, and second, we wanted to emphasize our degree and certificate programs."
"Quite simply, most students and faculty had no idea what Unversity Studies did. I was strongly supportive of the name change; however, I had some concerns about disenfranchising some of our faculty and their roles. However, it was a good decision since INTS and Leadership Studies are the focus of the future, and other programs were subsumed in various other structures. We are busy now purchasing new signage, stationary, business cards, and the like. I truly believe the impact will be significant, greatly contributing to the visibility and
growth of our degree and certificate
programs,” said Casey.
The total number of enrolled INTS degree
program students continues to increase.
"We currently have 155 active INTS majors,
which is an increase of more than 50 percent
from the same time last year," Dr. Michael
Keleher, degree program director, said.
Paulette Black and Dr. Rebecca Casey