ASU officials have announced the cancellation of the MBA program at ASU's West campus.
The move was a surprise to many on campus, though Leanne Atwater, interim dean of the School of Global Management and Leadership, said University officials including Provost Mark Searle and W.P. Carey School of Business Dean Robert Mittelstaedt have been discussing what to do with the program since 2004.
Atwater said she believes that both the SGML and the Carey School could have individually continued to offer MBA programs. But, after hearing arguments presented by both sides, President Michael Crow chose to eliminate the West campus' program.
The decision was made public on Jan. 25 in an e-mail announcement written by Searle.
"The decision to shift from [an] MBA program to other more innovative and specialized graduate degree programs was made after a lengthy discussion with the school's interim dean, faculty leaders and ASU administration," he wrote. "In no way does this decision suggest we do not want to invest in management education at the West campus, or to expand graduate education in management and accounting. Quite the contrary; we simply do not believe our continuing to offer the MBA serves ASU well."
Searle added that the Carey and the SGML MBA programs overlapped.
Atwater said she and others at the SGML were disappointed by the decision.
"They [ASU administrators] are doing what is right for the University, not necessarily the students," said Atwater, who said she first learned of the decision on Jan. 19.
During a Jan. 25 meeting of West campus faculty, Crow was asked if community and business leaders in the West Valley were consulted in advance about eliminating the MBA program. Crow said ASU officials routinely meet with West Valley leaders to discuss a broad range of topics, though he said the community was not specifically informed of the University's plans regarding the West campus MBA program.
Students currently enrolled in the West MBA program will be allowed to complete the degree at West campus, Searle said. The coursework and faculty will remain the same for those enrolled.
However, the fall class of 2006 will be the last admitted to the program. Meanwhile, five new master's degree programs will be offered at West campus, including degrees in leadership, accounting, sales management, financial portfolio management and global services operations.
The degrees will be 30-hour programs at a cost comparable to the current 48-hour MBA program.
Atwater said the Carey School hopes to offer its MBA program, which is ranked 29th in the nation, in the West Valley in the future.
Meanwhile, Searle said a national search is underway to find a permanent dean of the SGML by spring 2007.
Reach the reporter at eric.p.johnson@asu.edu.
