Adrian College awarded best online programs ranking by U.S. News & World Report
ADRIAN — Adrian College was recently awarded a “Best Online Programs” ranking by U.S. News & World Report for its degree granting distance-education Master’s in Business (non-MBA) program. The college was ranked 87th in the nation this year to receive the “Best” status, a news release from Adrian College said.
U.S. News & World Report noted that online education is no longer just an option for many students — it has become the norm. Virtual learning has grown out of necessity in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Adrian College continues to evolve into a college of the future with recent upgrades to it's campus including state-of-the-art video remote learning systems being installed into every classroom.
“Adrian College continues to attract very large freshmen classes because of our commitment to innovation and positive change that appeals to today’s students,” Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking said. “To this end, my goal is to equip every single classroom on campus with audio and video systems that provide the flexibility for remote learning during these unpredictable times. Our preference will always be in-person classroom learning, but it is wonderful to have the option for remote instruction if it is needed to keep our students and faculty safe and healthy. The college of the future must include hybrid learning options and this investment will ensure that we continue to be a leader in this area.”
Docking recently attended a convention with approximately 200 college presidents and said nearly all attendees agreed that future classrooms will offer in-person and online learning opportunities.
Docking explains in detail how colleges and universities will have to evolve in his newest book, “The College of the Future: Lowering Costs for Students by Fixing the Business Model of Higher Education.” The book is expected to be published and available later this month.
Adrian College hired Red Letter, a technology company out of Addison, for the audio/video system installations. Red Letter has completed six classrooms at a cost of approximately $144,000. Adrian College has in total 90 classrooms that will be upgraded over the next year. The entire project is expected to cost approximately $2,300,000.
“There is significant interest from our alumni and friends to support this project,” said Adrian College Vice President of Development Jim Mahony. “I have been surprised at the number of donors who have expressed interest in providing this technology to our faculty and students.”
“The bottom line is, in these unprecedented times during a global pandemic, we’ve had to become very flexible with our modality of teaching and learning,” added Adrian College Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs Andrea Milner. “And, part of this is making technological upgrades to support these opportunities for students and faculty that continue meeting and conducting classes during times they may not be able to attend in person.”
Milner said there is no firm deadline set for the completion of the entire project although the project is moving along more quickly than expected.
“We’re currently working on identifying our next set of classrooms, and of course, securing the funding,” she said. “The project will be ongoing until we have equipped our learning environment with the best, most updated technology available.”
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: AC awarded best online programs ranking by U.S News & World Report
