2019 Education magazine

Page 36 2019 “Education making a difference” LINCOLN DAILY NEWS Thursday, Jan. 24, 2019 institution. The trustees were on board and excited to have this return to the past for their college. Dr. Gerlach said since that day, the college has added a number of baccalaureate or bachelor degrees – 12 to date and more planned for the future. He said the end result was that enrollment shot up substantially and now the college can tout that it is the least expensive four-year college. Building a “pragmatic” program The college is adding baccalaureate or bachelor degrees on a regular basis. There is a process the school has to go through to get accreditation to offer each bachelor, so what is coming in the future are still goals to be achieved, but Dr. Gerlach is optimistic that the school will add another bachelor’s degree and its first master’s in the coming year or two. The school is looking to add a Bachelor of Law that will be the preparatory program for those who wish to become attorneys. Dr. Gerlach said the pre-law curriculum will be modeled after law schools and will be everything that is needed for a student to successfully transfer into a law school. The program will also offer a preparatory for the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) that every student must pass to be enrolled in a law school. The first master’s to return to Lincoln College will be a Master of Business Administration (MBA.) Dr. Gerlach said he is hopeful that these two new degrees will be added for fall 2019. A third goal is to add a second master ‘s in 2020 in criminal justice. Dr. Gerlach noted that the college is being selective on the bachelor and master degrees it will offer. He said that the goal is to offer “pragmatic” or practical degrees that will lead to solid careers. The school is also looking at the degrees that are needed in the immediate geographical location. He said that it is important that the school provide job-worthy graduates who can fill positions locally. When that happens, the school is adding to the economic development and growth of the community. Attracting students from near and far Dr. Gerlach said that the changes the college is making is attracting students both from CONTINUED