The Tower Fall 2019 - 8

Planning
for Growth

Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is facing a momentous time
in our history. What started as a bequest from a humble statesman
who dreamed of a socially just world, where unearned privilege did
not exist, has grown into a nationally-recognized college that literally
transforms the circumstances of the lives of the students who pass
through its doors.
Last year, the College had 2,800 applications for 700 openings in our
freshmen class. And our Career Services team connected with more
than 1,400 employers with nearly 4,000 jobs for 400 graduates. As
a result of the College's leadership, its demonstrated success in its
collective body of work, and the commitment by the Governor of
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and his administration to fund
our College for growth and expansion, we are poised to change the
trajectory of economically disadvantaged individuals and others in
Pennsylvania for generations to come.
Planning for this growth, which is projected to increase our
enrollment over the next several years to nearly 2,000 students, is
a multi-phased, disciplined process. The resulting Academic Master
Plan provides context and criteria for the development of goals that
align with academic initiatives and the College's strategic goals.
The plan is built on a foundation of pillars. These include a campus
community that fosters success for all; a focus on teaching and
learning; academic and technical program excellence; relevant
technical and educational programs to ensure employability of our
graduates and to meet the growing skills gap in industry; community
and industry partnerships; alternative options for students to finance
college to address the growing student debt crisis in our country; and
enhanced campus facilities and infrastructure.
The process to get to our Academic Master Plan is textbook planning.
We conduct research that identifies our internal strengths and
weaknesses, and our external challenges and opportunities. We
review recommendations from our Middle States surveys, which
benchmarks TSCT against other colleges. We hold conversations
with students, faculty, staff and our leadership team. And, we have
our Master Academic Plan. But now what? We commit, as most
institutions do, that this plan "will not sit on a shelf." It will indeed
provide guidance for a carefully crafted roadmap to support our
vision for the future. The key is the execution on the strategy.
Plans to expand in-demand programs and to increase capacity are
already underway. In his letter in this edition of The Tower, College
President Dr. William Griscom outlines many of these changes. In
addition, we are moving forward with the development of new
programs to meet urgent industry needs. DACUM meetings are in
process to develop curriculum for two new majors, expected to
launch Fall 2021 - Diesel Technology and Laboratory Analytics. Both
promise immediate employability of our graduates and will address
urgent industry needs.

Dr. Timothy Bianchi
Interim Vice President
of Academic Affairs

8  The Tower

As Alumni of TSCT, you are the foundation of our growth. Throughout
our history, the College has remained committed to its mission of
providing an education regardless of social or economic challenges
that will result in a job at a family-sustaining wage while meeting the
needs to support the economic needs of industry. As industry need
evolves, so too does the academic platform or TSCT.
The Tower Fall 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Tower Fall 2019
