Page 11 - WesternU View Summer 2019

Claremont Graduate University (CGU) and Western
University of Health Sciences (WesternU) announced on
June 5, 2019 a strategic alliance to offer students
collaborative programming with a focus on health
sciences, public health, and health systems management.
In addition to the complementary programs, the alliance
will facilitate joint research initiatives between faculty and
students that will address complex community, national,
and global health industry challenges.
The alliance of two respected, unique, private, graduate-
only institutions – situated on nearby campuses and with
thematically similar missions and cultures – will benefit
current and prospective CGU students and faculty, said
Len Jessup, PhD, who is the president of Claremont
Graduate University.
“CGU and WesternU share many characteristics,
including similar missions to provide unsurpassed
graduate-level education to our students so that they
achieve professional success and fulfillment in their
chosen professions,” Jessup said. “This alliance is a
natural extension of our mission and provides unique
opportunities for our students and faculty.”
For WesternU – which to date has focused solely on
health sciences – the alliance will enable the school to
expand its programs to include management and public
health, said President Daniel R. Wilson, MD, PhD,
Western University of Health Sciences.
“This natural partnership of neighboring institutions
aligns one of the nation’s oldest all-graduate institutions
with the largest aggregation of graduate health science
colleges in the country,” Wilson said. “This is a new era
for both universities, especially our students and faculty,
but one that can benefit all the Claremont Colleges as
well as the entire region and beyond. We take this robust
partnership seriously. This remarkable new trajectory for
teaching, research, and service, though as yet uncharted,
will have great consequence to our students, our
institutions, and the wider world.”
The alliance creates a concentrated, graduate-level,
educational presence in Los Angeles County, Southern
California, and the western United States. Together, CGU
and WesternU serve 6,000 students and employ more
than 1,000 people in Claremont and Pomona, Calif.
Each university will maintain separate operational,
financial and governance structures. n
CGU/WesternU Strategic Alliance FAQ
Q: Why are CGU/WesternU developing this partnership?
How does it benefit each institution?
A: We see this as a smart and productive alignment on many levels,
most importantly on how this partnership will positively impact
opportunities for our students. Health care is an essential and
important field, and not just from a core medical perspective.
Providing students with a well-rounded education that combines
health sciences and business, for example, will prepare the next
generation of health care leaders with the best education and
perspective to address the complex issues.
Additionally, the partnership allows for easier faculty
collaboration to explore new opportunities for joint research.
The complementary nature of our curriculum has the potential
to lead to significant new health-related developments and
research.
Q: Will any new programs be offered based on the partnership?
A: This partnership is about opening up opportunities based on the
current curriculum offered by each institution. No new programs
are being planned at this point.
Q: How will students benefit?
A: We’re excited to say that it is the students that will receive the
best benefit from this partnership – the opportunity to craft their
education more specifically based on their desired outcome. For
example, the ability to combine a health sciences program with a
business component will be attractive to many students.
Q: Don’t the two universities offer competing programs?
A: No. We offer complementary programs that when combined,
will really speak to the market demand in the health care field. It
gives each university the opportunity to offer a broader depth of
curriculum and programming to our students.
Q: How will student tuition work if someone takes classes at both
institutions?
A: Each institution will retain its own financial system and tuition
rates. We will jointly work with students that take coursework at
each institution to ensure accounting is clear and
understandable.
Q: Is this leading to a bigger partnership and/or merger?
A: We are focusing on the complementary aspects of the curriculum
and joint faculty research at this point in time. Both CGU and
WesternU are keenly interested in assuring our programming is
aligned with industry and market demand. If further
collaboration makes sense for our students and each institution,
we will certainly explore those options.
Q: Does this mean WesternU is now a part of The Claremont Colleges?
A: No. There is no structural or governance changes to either
institution resulting from this partnership.
Q: Is this a financial merger of any kind?
A: No. Each institution will retain its current governance structure
and distinct financial operational structure.
Q: How do you expect this to impact each organization in terms of
enrollment and operations?
A: We believe this is a wonderful opportunity for students interested
in crafting degrees aligned with their professional goals in mind.
As such, we hope to see our current students, and certainly new
students, take advantage of the opportunity. Each institution will
utilize its current operational processes for managing enrollment,
tuition, etc., based on course enrollments.
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