Regents Approve Two New Minors, New Certificate Program
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., March 25, 2011 -- The Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents today approved new minors in agriculture/horticulture entrepreneurship and autism studies, and a new certificate of healthcare facilities operations.
New Minor – Agriculture/Horticulture Entrepreneurship
The new minor in agriculture/horticulture entrepreneurship will be a joint effort of the School of Polytechnic Studies and the Donald L. Harrison College of Business.
“This minor recognizes that many of our agriculture and horticulture graduates eventually go into business for themselves, either through a start-up venture or through an ownership position in an existing small, locally based agriculture/horticulture firm,” said Dr. Ron Rosati, Southeast provost.
He says there is increasing awareness that students graduating from agriculture and horticulture programs would benefit from knowledge of entrepreneurial processes and more entrepreneurial mindset.
The new minor will compliment the recently approved offering of undergraduate degrees in agriculture and horticulture on Southeast’s regional campuses. Rosati said it is likely that some students from other majors who have particular interest in agriculture or horticulture will be attracted to this minor.
No new courses or extra faculty resources are required for the new minor, he said.
New Minor-Autism Studies
The new minor in autism studies will be a joint effort of the Departments of Communication Disorders and Human Environmental Studies in the College of Health and Human Services and the Department of Elementary, Early and Special Education in the College of Education.
Rosati said the new minor has been developed to promote interdisciplinary study in the areas of autism, language and applied behavior analysis by providing a concentration of courses that would be useful to students majoring in special education, communication disorders, child development and early childhood, as well as a variety of other students with an interest in special populations.
New Program-Certificate of Healthcare Facilities Operations
The new Certificate of Healthcare Facilities Operations will be offered by the Department of Industrial and Engineering Technology. The certificate is designed to prepare students with the ability to manage healthcare facility functions, understand compliance issues and integrate technology in the management of materials and resources, Rosati said. The certificate also provides a pathway for students to obtain the Certified Healthcare Facilities Manager certification from the American Society of Healthcare Engineers.
Rosati said Brigham Young University and Purdue University are the only two universities currently offering programs to prepare facility managers for the healthcare industry.
“The demand locally and statewide could not be met by these two programs alone,” he said.
Data from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center show the healthcare industry ranks first among all other industries in Missouri for hiring healthcare facilities managers, and they are projected to employ close to 138,000 in this field alone between 2008 and 2018, Rosati said.
“Over this 10-year period, the expected growth statewide is 8.7 percent, with 9.7 percent growth expected in the southeast Missouri region,” he said.
The Department of Industrial and Engineering Technology at Southeast worked closely with the Missouri Society for Healthcare Engineering and the two local hospitals, Southeast Health and Saint Francis Medical Center, in developing a certificate to address this need, Rosati said. In addition, several health organizations provided letters of support.