email : Webview : OU OFFICIAL: Mutually beneficial opportunity with Marygrove College

From the offices of the

President and the

Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Colleagues,

A few months ago, we learned Marygrove College was facing a dire financial situation.

Since then, we have had the opportunity to consider a range of approaches to support Marygrove, a 92-year-old higher educational institution with a mission to serve the residents of Detroit through education, economic and neighborhood initiatives.

In the last several weeks, it became apparent that Marygrove’s Board of Trustees had decided to close the college at the end of fall (2019) semester. The decision became official on Friday and was made public earlier today.

While the initial news of Marygrove’s closing creates momentary uncertainty for Marygrove students, the OU administration has embarked on a plan to allow those students to complete their degrees at Oakland University.

To this end, we are committed to making sure current Marygrove graduate students have a solid understanding of the academic course transfer process, and a clear path to continuing their education and attaining degrees at OU.

Establishing this path includes an expedient and comprehensive transfer process, which requires abiding by the guidelines set forth by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The mandatory process for the closure of programs and teach-out arrangements is intended to allow students to complete their programs by minimizing academic and financial disruption as much as possible.

Currently, OU has a pending agreement with Marygrove and HLC; this agreement states our commitment to the guidelines, and most importantly, to the students.

At this stage, we have determined which OU programs might receive the Marygrove students. In the days ahead, we will work closely with deans and faculty to collaborate on crafting appropriate teach-out plans. Throughout the process, we will seek input from HLC, which must approve the final plan.

While further details must be discussed and addressed, we seek your expertise and support in helping to provide an OU pathway for the Marygrove students. We also anticipate that there will be collaborative conversations between Marygrove and OU faculty and staff that will enable individualized curricular plans to be developed allowing for a smooth transition for students.

We are hopeful Marygrove graduate students studying in areas that include teacher education, human resource management and social justice will find a home at OU. We expect they will appreciate our focus on student success, research, community engagement, and the cultivation of a diverse and inclusive community.

In the months ahead, please warmly welcome Marygrove students into our programs, classes and the OU community.

Thank you,

Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D.
President

James P. Lentini
Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost