Edinboro University adding host of academic programs

Edinboro University will debut nearly a dozen new academic offerings this fall as another of Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned universities lends more detail to its push to rebuild enrollment in part by retooling the instruction it offers.

The new additions range from fermentation science and data analytics to community arts, among others. They follow the announcement back in March that nine degree programs were being eliminated because of low enrollment, as were several concentrations.

Michael Hannan, Edinboro’s interim president, noted that the additions follow an extensive review of the university’s academic programs and an analysis of market demands.

“As a regional, comprehensive university, our role is to ensure we prepare students for fulfilling careers that meet the needs of the community, regionally and beyond,” he said in a statement.

The five new majors, two new minors and four new concentrations, as well as the rationale for them, include:

Accounting (major) given U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicting that demand will outpace most professions in the coming decade;

Applied Technical Leadership (major) enabling students to advance their careers while remaining on the job, with the option of doing the coursework completely online if already holding an associate’s degree in a technical field;

Community Arts (concentration within Art Education) an interdisciplinary program preparing students for a career advocating for social justice by “using art as a medium to educate communities affected by poverty, drugs,

violence and neglect”;

Data Analytics (a major and a minor) given growing demand in most industries for individuals able to secure and analyze data;

Dyslexia (minor) preparing students for a condition that affects roughly 20 percent of the general population, and almost 80 percent of those identified with learning disabilities;

Fermentation Science (major) addressing a fastgrowing area of pharmaceutical fermentation, dairy fermentation and the craft beer and wine industries;

Forensic Anthropology (concentration within Anthropology) to study skeletal remains to aid law enforcement in solving crimes;

Geographic Information Science (major) focusing on new opportunities in such areas as Google Earth, mapping routes for selfdriving cars, and ways to efficiently deliver packages by combining geography, cartography, computer science and photogrammetry;

Pre-Occupational Therapy (concentration within Health Sciences) helping prepare for entry to a professional school to earn a Master’s of Occupational Therapy (MOT) degree; and Pre-Optometry (concentration within Health Sciences) intended to sharpen students’ focus on the skills needed to prepare doctors of optometry.

Mr. Hannan said Edinboro will continue to examine its offerings and market demand and make changes accordingly.

Other State System of Higher Education campuses, including California and Clarion universities, have recently announced their own program shifts to reflect market demand and enrollment declines.

Edinboro’s enrollment stood at 5,575 last fall, down from 8,642 in 2010. Like many of the other State System schools, a range of issues including declining numbers of high school graduates in parts of the state and shifts in program demand have contributed to the losses.