On Wednesday, February 5, found representatives of Saint Xavier University in Gilbert, Arizona for the dedication ceremony of SXU’s new satellite campus.
When asked her opinion on the new Gilbert satellite campus junior Alexzanderia Clemmons stated, “While I’ve heard about the new campus, I’m not one hundred percent sure about the decision to open it.”
There has been a university wide task force who has been working on what we are doing here in Chicago as well as in Gilbert.
Plans for the Gilbert satellite campus began several years ago when Gilbert, who was looking to build a college campus due to the growing need of the community, approached Saint Xavier.
Many of the students of Gilbert are leaving community college and unable to enter an Arizona university due to the high number of Arizona students and a low number of Arizona universities. Due to this many students are forced to attend out of state schools when furthering their education.
The decision to come to Saint Xavier came from the want for a faith based, mission based university for a community made up of both Catholics as well as Latter-day Saints.
With a community of approximately 200,000 residents Gilbert has more then enough students to build a viable campus.
The decision to build an out of state satellite campus is nothing new to Saint Xavier whose history began in 1846 when the Sisters of Mercy made there way from Pittsburgh to Chicago where there was an underserved population of students made up of women and girls.
Provost Dr. Paul DeVito stated that when it comes to the Gilbert campus, “We’re building on our tradition of going where there is an underserved population who does not have access to educational opportunities. We think it is very tied in with the tradition and mission of our school.”
Not only is the South West one of the fastest growing areas in the United States, but also Arizona appears to have a large Chicago based population.
This was seen during an alumni event held last week where the Blackhawks played the Coyotes. Dr. DeVito said that you saw so many Blackhawks fans that you would have thought you were in Chicago.
When it comes to the programs being offered on the Gilbert campus there will initially be a two-year undergraduate opportunity that involves dual enrollment with the community college.
Saint Xavier is currently working with Maricopa on creating this dual enrollment opportunity where students can complete their first two years at a community college and then enter Saint Xavier’s Gilbert campus to finish their last two years.
Currently, the Gilbert campus will have undergraduate programs in Liberal Studies, Professional Studies, Nursing, and Business Administration. At the moment Saints Xavier is currently exploring opportunities regarding programs with the school of education.
Graduate programs will include a program through the Graham School of Business, another through the School of Nursing, and possibly a masters program through the School of Education.
Concerning the programs offered by the Gilbert campus Dr. DeVito stated that, “Over time as we’re there and see what the students’ needs are it is likely that we’ll add more programs then what we have to date.”
For now the projected starting date if the Gilbert campus is the fall semester of 2015.
The opening of this campus will, according to Dr. DeVito, have very little effect on students here at the Saint Xavier Chicago campus. There will minimal interaction between the Gilbert campus and our own, but there is hope that some interaction will be built.
Dr. DeVito explains that there is hope that this can possibly be done through athletics. He says that there may be a possibility that some of our athletic events could be held at the Gilbert campus, such as some softball or baseball games in the spring. They will be screening taped Saint Xavier Athletic events at the Gilbert campus.
Having a satellite campus in Gilbert has allowed Saint Xavier to get knowledge about the university out to the Arizona area. According to Dr. DeVito there have already been several applicants to Saint Xavier from the area.
It is important to note that the reason behind the Gilbert campus come first and foremost from Saint Xavier’s mission to give education opportunities to student who do not have them. However, there is a business aspect to. The campus allows for Saint Xavier to grow both its undergraduate and graduate student population allowing for more diversification.
In today’s academic world there is a need for universities, all of who are competing for students, to diversify through new campus sites, the bringing in of international students, and online courses. This allows for a more stable long term diversified student enrollment model.
Catlyn Hicks
Senior News Editor