“Oakland University is committed to the overall prosperity and economic growth of Macomb County through education, research and business partnerships,” said Oakland University President Gary Russi. “Bringing to the county a unique 21st-century satellite campus is the next logical step.”
Oakland has enjoyed a long and growing partnership with Macomb Community College, the Macomb University Center and the Macomb Intermediate School District (MISD). Russi said today’s announcement significantly builds on this solid foundation of partnerships in the region.
Vice President for Outreach Mary Otto said, “With a new satellite campus — Oakland University–Macomb — we intend to approach educational outreach in a new way, one that is designed for life and work in the 21st century. Our number one goal is to provide more educational opportunities to respond to the aspirations of future students and the economic development needs of our communities.”
Otto said the Oakland-Macomb satellite plans to offer new programs in health care, education and human resources, technology and international business, engineering and communications arts. The campus will operate out of a headquarters facility in Macomb County, and classes will be offered throughout the region.
“Our goal is to serve the people in Macomb County by offering a student-centered curriculum, rich with student support services, including academic advising, which is so critical to students’ success,” Otto said. “We target an enrollment goal of 2,000 students by 2010 and 5,000 students by 2020."
Oakland University already offers more than 15 degree programs in Macomb County that serve 1,600 students, said Oakland University Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Virinder Moudgil. The number of Oakland students at the University Center and the MISD has increased by 345 percent since 1999. “Oakland has always been an institution that listens and responds to market demands, shaping our curriculum to meet the needs of students and employers. We are pleased to extend our educational services to the people of Macomb County in an even greater way,” Moudgil said.
Oakland officials also announced that former Macomb Community College President Al Lorenzo will join Oakland University as an executive in residence beginning October 1. Lorenzo has a national reputation for pioneering work in uniting community college and higher education in collaborative efforts to serve the educational and outreach needs of the community.