Clarion University Council of Trustees agreed to send forward three new degree proposals to the Board of Governors of the State System of Higher Education at their April 23 meeting. The university hopes by July to have approval for new Bachelor of Science in sport management, Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in paralegal studies and Master of Applied Science in applied data analytics degrees.
"The departmental faculty have spent the past year working on the degree proposal," said Colleen McAleer, Ph.D., interim executive dean of Clarion's Venango College, of the sport management degree.
"The university currently has a degree in liberal studies with a concentration in sport management. That program has grown steadily in enrollment, and existing students were surveyed and indicated that they wanted the degree in sport management to be offered on the Clarion campus."
McAleer said the new degree will qualify graduates to pursue careers as sport coach, sports scout, sports agent, athletic director, sports marketing manager, sports promoter and sports facility manager.
The program will focus on skills related to the business and legal aspects of athletics, including management, marketing, athletic administration, athletic directing, sports marketing and promotion and directing a sports facility. Existing, qualified faculty will teach the coursework, although McAleer expects additional faculty to be added later.
Currently seven other State System schools offer the major.
For information about the sport management degree, contact Doug Knepp, Ph.D., at dknepp@clarion.edu.
The BSBA in paralegal studies has been a work in progress. Currently all of Clarion's ABA-approved competitors offer a degree above the associate level. This new BSBA will allow Clarion to compete with any paralegal program in the nation.
"This is an area that has a 17 percent growth rate," said Jerry Belloit, Ph.D., chair of the finance department.
The combination of an AACSB-accredited and ABA-approved paralegal program provides the best of both worlds.
"(Paralegals) who work in business earn a mean salary of $62,020. In certain sectors business paralegals earn a higher mean salary, such as software publishing companies who pay paralegals a mean wage of $77,140," Belloit said.
A BSBA in paralegal studies opens a wide range of doors for the graduate from corporate board rooms to the criminal justice system, enabling the student to use the legal knowledge for the betterment of society.
Frank Shepard, Ph.D., will head the program. Beginning in 1990 he spearheaded the effort for the associate in paralegal studies to be approved by the ABA. Since that time, under his direction, the program evolved as necessary and maintained ABA standards. He has elected to leave the associate program to create new and advanced paralegal offerings.
Earlier this spring, the Board of Governors approved letters of completion in paralegal studies and paralegal studies – oil and gas. While the letters of completion are available to all degree seeking students, the 24-credit letter of completion is 18 additional credits for business majors, all of which are eligible as business electives. Either letter qualifies the student to be an employable, effective paralegal.
"The growing trend among employers is to demand that paralegals possess a bachelor's degree. Allowing a student enrolled in a current Clarion degree program to add the additional credential of a paralegal certificate creates a very employable graduate," Shepard said. "It is a rare field that does not require some knowledge of law. For example, BSN students could add this certificate and be a valued, well-paid expert for malpractice litigation, workers compensation, etc., while a business major could position herself for a lucrative career in the natural gas industry. The possibilities are endless, as law touches everything."
For information about the paralegal studies program or letters of completion, contact Shepard at shepard@clarion.edu.
The Master of Science in applied data analytics has been in development for about 18 months, said Phil Frese, Ph.D., dean of the College of Business Administration and Information Sciences.
"This is an area geared toward analyzing big data sets," Frese said. "These data sets are usually categorized as so large there's no data program big enough to analyze them. An example is Amazon – they know what I'm going to buy – through analytics – before I know what I'll buy."
Just as developing the degree proposal was a collaborative effort, so will be the delivery.
"Clarion is well suited to offer the degree, because the School of Information Sciences is part of the College of Business, so the two can work together immediately," Frese said. "As soon as we mentioned (the development of the degree), we had over 30 (undergraduate) students who are graduating who said they'd be interested in the program. In addition, more than 80 alumni were surveyed, and more than 50 were interested in the program. We feel very confident that it will be successful."
Students will learn the design and manipulation of large data sets for a specific application, whether it be finance, marketing, management, health care, social science, political science, education or many other fields. The degree program is open to any undergraduate major who desire to leverage their training with a big data specialty.
Frese said as this area has grown, the need for skilled individuals has grown. Two years ago, a student with a bachelor's degree in this field could expect a starting salary of $70,000 to $80,000. Only 80 schools in the country offer the degree, according to Frese, and no other State System schools currently offer it.
Matt Brigida, a faculty member in the College of Business, will lead the instruction. He has significant experience in working with large data sets, which he did prior to joining Clarion's faculty. More faculty members may be added in the future.
For information about the Master of Science in applied data analytics, contact Frese at pfrese@clarion.edu.