Higher education

Multiple outlets available for continued learning

Thursday, March 26, 2009

The College of Southern Maryland is experiencing its highest enrollment ever in its 50-year history, demonstrating its impact on the people and communities its serves in Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties. Campuses in La Plata, Leonardtown and Prince Frederick as well as centers in Waldorf, Lexington Park and on Radio Station Road in La Plata serve more than 22,500 credit and continuing education students. Its fall 2008 student credit headcount of 8,253 is the highest level on record, with the Leonardtown Campus enrollment increasing 7.3 percent over the previous fall and 12.7 percent over four years ago.

The Leonardtown campus consists of three buildings, which provide science labs, including advanced technology, electronics, chemistry, physics, biology, microbiology/anatomy and physiology, as well as a wellness center and auditorium for student and community use. Also, construction is under way for a new wellness center. The 32,000-square-foot facility will house two swimming pools, and a variety of classroom spaces for aerobics, yoga and other fitness activities.

Leonardtown's facilities provide space for CSM to further develop its articulation programs with the St. Mary's public school system, and in particular CSM's Dual Enrollment Program in which high school students earn college credit at half the cost while still attending high school. Academic programs being developed include credit programs in homeland security, as well as non-credit programs in hospitality management, tourism and online continuing education courses in early childhood development. As the college continues to develop and offer more programs and courses, enrollments continue to grow, and online offerings remain in high demand.

Throughout its history, the college has extended its services into the community to meet the higher education needs of its students, including linked bachelor-degree programs with 10 partnering colleges and universities. Local to the St. Mary's community are articulated bachelor's degree programs in astronautical engineering, electrical engineering and electronics engineering technology with Capitol College; in technical management with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University; in business administration with the University of Baltimore, and in computer science with St. Mary's College of Maryland. There is also the University of Maryland College Park's Maryland Transfer Advantage Program which provides early access to University of Maryland advisers and other resources.

Other partnerships include an Education Partnership Agreement between CSM and Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division to develop a pipeline for students to advance from academic studies to employment within national security industries in Southern Maryland.

The partnership will develop the framework for interaction between CSM students and faculty, area elementary, middle and high school students and teachers, and NAWCAD scientists and mentors. The initiative will begin to identify students with an interest in science while they are in elementary school, and will provide learning and internship opportunities for them through college.

CSM is also partnering with other higher education and naval organizations — the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering, the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center and the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division — in joint education and research efforts to establish four-year aerospace and mechanical engineering bachelor of science degree programs in Southern Maryland, in close proximity to the Patuxent River Naval Air Station. No such degrees are available in the region at present. The partnership seeks to increase the number of people in Southern Maryland prepared to provide advanced engineering skills to the Patuxent River Naval Air Station and companies that work with it.

CSM's Leonardtown campus also offers courses for continuing education and personal enrichment, including an expanded Kids'/Teens' College and driver education training. A growing selection of personal enrichment courses and the adult PLUS classes provide the setting for adults to enrich their lives with quality, convenient and affordable programs through luncheon lectures and classes.

CSM facilitates workforce development and a strong connection to the region's business community through its Corporate and Community Training Institute. CCTI demonstrates a history of addressing the specialized needs of the local business community. In addition to entrepreneurial guidance, leadership and supervisor development programs, the corporate center at the Leonardtown campus also offers comprehensive training and consulting for organizations seeking to increase productivity and organizational efficiency.

For information call 240-725-5300 or visit www.csmd.edu. The Leonardtown campus is located at 22950 Hollywood Road in Leonardtown.

St. Mary's College of Maryland

St. Mary's College of Maryland is the state's only public honors college, offering not only a rigorous, liberal arts course of undergraduate study, but also numerous opportunities for continuing education and professional certification. Located by St. Mary's River, next to Historic St. Mary's City, the campus is about 10 minutes southwest of Lexington Park on Route 5.

Approximately 2,000 undergraduate students are currently enrolled, and the college has an average student to faculty ratio of 13-to-1. The college boasts more Fulbright faculty winners than any of their peer institutions. More than 98 percent of the regular, full-time faculty hold a Ph.D. or other terminal degree.

The community is invited to campus lectures, concerts and athletic events. In the summer, the River Concert Series is held outdoors on Friday evenings from June 19 to July 31. The Governor's Cup Yacht Race comes to the campus Saturday, Aug. 31. To find out more about events and lectures, visit the college's Web site at www.smcm.edu or go to the events calendar at http://calendar.smcm.edu/BrowseEvents.aspx. The college library also extends privileges to county residents.

Community members can enroll in undergraduate courses, the certificate programs in project management or apply for the Master's of Arts in Teaching program. About 400 people enroll each semester for continuing education courses, all of which are held on campus. Participants can choose from more than 250 four-credit courses and also have the option of auditing courses. These classes are the same as the regular, undergraduate offerings and span the curriculum from accounting to art history to Web engineering. Retired persons 60 years of age or older may take courses tuition-free. For more information about continuing education, contact the registrar's office at 240-895-4336.

The college offers non-credit academic classes outside of the undergraduate curriculum through the Office of Lifelong Learning. Through the Grace & John Horton Explorations in Learning program, the college offers classes at the Wildewood Retirement Village Community Center. These classes are open to the public. Other non-credit programs include swimming lessons for kids and adults, hatha yoga classes, and "Mature Muscles" conditioning classes. Trips abroad with a learning component for "friends of the college" are also offered periodically. For more information contact the Office of Lifelong Learning at 240-895-2200.

The college offers 25 majors including psychology, economics and biology. In addition, students have the opportunity to design their own major and may have multiple majors. The college's international education office provides study abroad opportunities throughout the world. Semester or yearlong exchange programs are available through a dozen partner institutions in such countries as China (Shanghai and Hong Kong), England, France, Germany and The Gambia in West Africa.

For more information about undergraduate applications, call the college's admissions office at 240-895-5000.

The college has practice fields for varsity sports and a multi-million dollar addition to the athletic facility including an Olympic-sized pool, rock-climbing wall, workout center and basketball/volleyball arena. During the summer, the college's coaches run a variety of sports camps for children. Community members may purchase access to the pool and exercise facilities. Drop by or call the Athletics and Recreation Center welcome desk at 240-895-2136.

Southern Maryland Higher Education Center

The Southern Maryland Higher Education Center offers residents of the tri-county area more than 90 academic programs delivered on site at the center's campus in California.

Included are 70 graduate university degree programs and about 20 bachelor's degrees programs. Among the academic programs are 30 engineering and technology-related programs and 20 education programs. Also included are business degrees, health and counseling degrees. All academic programs recruited to the center are approved for presentation at SMHEC by the Maryland Higher Education Commission. All courses are presented in their entirety on the center's 24-acre campus by university partners.

Seminars are held during evening hours and on weekends to accommodate the area's professional workforce. This high technology, multi-university institution houses academic programs presented by the following partner universities — Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland College Park, University of Maryland University College, George Washington University, Catholic University of America, Towson University, College of Notre Dame of Maryland, Gratz College and Capitol College.

The center's dedication to economic development for the region also extends to approximately 435 training and conference programs annually, career fairs, public service forums, business showcases and some 230 public service programs utilizing SMHEC's facilities.

The SMHEC's educational opportunities available to the citizens of Southern Maryland are the result of the vision of local Southern Maryland governmental and business leaders including the region's technology community, the top leadership of the Patuxent River Naval Air Station, local elected officials and administrators, state elected officials representing the region and private sector business leaders who understood the historical relationship between the presence in a region of knowledge-based technology education and successful economic growth. Visionaries campaigning for the creation of the center realized that the new thrust of technology information being generated by the expanding Patuxent River Naval Air Station could serve as the catalyst for a significant expansion of the region's economic wealth. Their vision has become a reality and the center has maintained a steady growth of new academic programs and class enrollments.

The Southern Maryland Higher Education Center is located at 44219 Airport Road, California, within the Wildewood Professional and Technology Park. To speak with a programs coordinator, call 301-737-2500 or visit www.smhec.org.

University of Maryland University College

University of Maryland University College offers undergraduate, graduate and distance education course opportunities in Southern Maryland. The Waldorf Center for Higher Education, Southern Maryland Higher Education Center and Patuxent River Naval Air Station offer a variety of face-to-face classes in several different degree programs. The College of Southern Maryland and UMUC have a long-standing and successful alliance, creating a seamless transfer from the associate's degree to the bachelor's degree. Additionally, University of Maryland University College is one of the leading providers of distance education in the world.

Call the Waldorf Center for Higher Education at 301-632-2900 or visit www.umuc.edu.

University of Maryland Cooperative Extension

University of Maryland Cooperative Extension provides informal classes, programs and information on issues of concern and interest to residents residing within a community. MCE field offices are located in every county throughout the state. In St. Mary's County MCE office, extension educators with expertise in agriculture, natural resources, 4-H youth development and family and consumer sciences are available. A nutrient management adviser is also available for consultation.

One of the fundamental responsibilities of MCE in St. Mary's is to educate county residents and show them how to apply research-based information to improve their quality of life and promote family and community economic prosperity.

MCE also works with youth and adults to promote environmental stewardship. Residents of St. Mary's have been using MCE services, information and programs since 1911.

St. Mary's County MCE is located on Peabody Street in Leonardtown. Office hours are weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Call 301-475-4482 or 301-475-4484 or visit the Web site stmarys.umd.edu.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

The Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is an independent, nonprofit university. It is made up of three main campuses — they are Daytona Beach, Fla.; Prescott, Ariz., and the third is made up of 130 campuses worldwide of which the Patuxent River campus is one.

In addition, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

The Patuxent River campus has been at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station for more than 30 years. In 2003, the Patuxent River office relocated outside of Gate 2 on Shangri-La Drive in Lexington Park.

Also, the Patuxent River campus offers two undergraduate degrees: AS/BS professional aeronautics and AS/BS technical management.

Students can earn a minor in logistics, management or safety. In addition, the campus offers the master's in aeronautical science with specializations in aeronautics, management, operations and safety. In addition, the Patuxent River campus has three certificate programs: aviation maintenance technology, for those students who want to obtain their airframes and powerplants license; logistics, which is the science and management of maintaining and transporting personnel and materials, with the coursework covering much of the material used in the certified professional logistician; and aviation safety, which provides the theory and concepts in the field of aviation safety.

Approximately 1,200 students are enrolled each year and approximately 75 students graduate yearly.

For more information about Embry-Riddle's degree programs, contact the university's office during regular business hours Monday through Friday at 301-863-8776 or fax questions to 301-863-7046 or e-mail patuxent.river.center@erau.edu.

Florida Institute of Technology

The Florida Institute of Technology at the Patuxent Site offers master's degrees in a variety of areas including public administration, acquisition and contract management, aerospace engineering, computer information systems, computer science, electrical engineering, engineering management, management, mechanical engineering, project management and a professional masters in business administration.

Several of these degrees may be obtained entirely through the school's distance learning program. The Maryland State Higher Education Commission authorizes all degrees. Visit http://uc.fit.edu/es/patuxent, call 301-862-1004 or notify by fax at 240-384-0211.

Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The office is located at 22188 Three Notch Road, Suite D, just outside Gate 1 of the Patuxent River Naval Air Station.