Fall Update
August 27, 2021
Greetings!
As we settle into Fall Term 1, it is important to reflect on some of the progress we have made in 2021. Just like the seasons, there is a lot of change is in the air at Unity College. As many colleges our size continue to shrink and even close, we have once again broken an enrollment record welcoming more than 1,900 full-time students for this term, and we are positioned to continue growing well into the future.
This past week Unity College was proud to welcome back returning Hybrid Learning students to our field station campus at 90 Quaker Hill Road. This is the first time since the pandemic we’ve had the opportunity to truly flex our Hybrid Learning muscles. The weekend move-in included a welcome ceremony for our students and their parents. On Sunday night students also enjoyed dinner, a bonfire, and games! We look forward to bringing more students back to Unity in the coming terms.
Hybrid Learning students return to 90 Quaker Hill Road
Earlier this month construction began on the Technical Institute for Environmental Professions. TIEP will serve a much different audience than any of our other SEBU’s. The Institute will focus on Associates Degrees, certificates, and continuing professional education. Some of the career paths our students will take include Veterinary Technician and jobs within the solar industry. Its location at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester puts it in a prime location to serve Maine’s most densely populated areas.
Construction begins for TIEP at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester
Students will be learning in state-of-the-art hyflex classrooms. The classrooms give the learner maximum flexibility to choose whether they’d like to attend these synchronous classes in person or remotely. The term HyFlex is a combination of hybrid and high-flexibilty. The classes will be taught by an instructor who is the facilitator for both in-class learners and online learners simultaneously.
Artist’s rendering of the new TIEP space
Distance Education, our online experiential learning option continues to bring in hundreds of students with each term. To support this exponential growth, we are excited to announce the hiring of Donavan Outten as Vice President of Distance Education. We’re also welcoming four new Deans to the Distance Education team, Kelly Boyer Ontl, Richard Gray, Dana Bosse, and Denise Young.
An interesting fact: the average student age in DE is now up to 34 years old as we continue to bring in more adults looking for Bachelor’s Degrees, Master’s Degrees, and non-degree credit courses. The flexibility of DE allows students to continue living their lives without missing a beat.
As always, please contact me at president@unity.edu, with any questions or comments you may have.
With Pride,
Dr. Melik Peter Khoury
President
