Goodwin receives initial approval for University of Bridgeport purchase
HBJ Photo | Stever Laschever
Goodwin University President Mark Scheinberg.
New England’s regional higher education accreditation board approved Goodwin University’s plan to buy the University of Bridgeport, putting the East Hartford school on track to create a new institution in Bridgeport by July 1.
The New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) and Goodwin announced this week that NECHE approved “a substantive change proposal that will result in a change of ownership for University of Bridgeport.” Under current plans, the University of Bridgeport will maintain its name and operate autonomously and have its own president and board [installed by Goodwin], but will fall under the umbrella of Goodwin, said Mark Scheinberg, Goodwin’s president.
That approval marks an important step in Goodwin's expansion, but also the shifting to a different approach than Scheinberg and others had originally planned.
“To the students, they will not see the difference,” said Scheinberg, who added the new concept is more of an out-and-out purchase of UB than the previous concept.
Under a memorandum of understanding signed in June, Goodwin, Fairfield-based Sacred Heart and Hamden-based Paier College of Art would have co-located programs on UB’s campus and purchased all of the school’s property and programs. They also agreed to honor credits earned by students at each other’s schools, creating a university park setup.
The deal had Sacred Heart buying three buildings and UB’s post-graduate education and engineering programs, along with its chiropractic and nutrition certificate programs, but after Sacred Heart stepped away from the project in October, Goodwin is buying those buildings and programs. Paier will still locate on UB's campus and will share credits with Goodwin, Scheinberg said.
Part of the reason Goodwin abandoned the university park concept is that accreditors and regulators would take much longer to approve something they've never seen before, Scheinberg said. However, he said, one university purchasing another is pretty common, and increases the likelihood of a speedier approval process.
“This has simplified our process with most of the accreditors,” Scheinberg said.
If the transfer in ownership is completed by July, the new University of Bridgeport will seek to open a location in East Hartford the following January, which would house courses from UB's engineering program, Scheinberg said. Goodwin will also open a location in Bridgeport, and the two universities will have a credit transfer agreement, which allows students from either school to receive credit for taking courses at the other.
Following the NECHE approval, Goodwin now needs approvals from dozens of accreditors for education in specific fields (i.e. nursing, engineering, etc.) that use different standards and timelines in their approval processes. It also needs final approval from the U.S. Department of education.
Scheinberg said he's optimistic about Goodwin's prospects for approval, and thinks the expansion will be good for students at UB and Goodwin.
“I think that this is going to be such a good thing for both communities," Scheinberg said. “We're able to expand our reach and offerings to each of our communities and really leverage our strength.”
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