SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. Shepherd University is moving forward with plans to create a business school.
The school will combine three existing departments, The Economics and Finance department and Accounting and Business Administration department at undergrad level, and the MBA program.
Dr. Ben Martz, the current dean of business school development and chairman of the Department of Business Administration says the school will be up and running for the 2017-2018 academic year.
He is tasked with developing a long term strategic plan as well as a tactical plan.
“Looking at the curriculum, seeing what works and what doesn’t work, hiring new people, and how to organize a school of business.”
Mertz says the school hopes to ultimately find a building to house all the programs under one roof.
The Shepherd University Foundation is entering into a public/private partnership to raise $600,000 through Business 2020.
“We needed to raise $600,000 in order to fund this over five year program, then it becomes self funded,” according to Ray Alavarez, chair of Business 2020, the entity created to do the fundraising.
“The business department at Shepherd has [historically] been the largest they’ve had,” Alvarez said. “Unfortunately over the last seven or eight years, we’ve seen a 21-percent drop in enrollment.”
Alvarez believes the focus brought about through the creation of the business school will help change that.
“It gives us the assurance that as we move forward, we’re looking at the right classes and we’re looking at the student needs.”
He plans on approaching alumni and alumni owned businesses for help in generating the money.
A company in Winchester has already pledged to match the first $250,000 of money raised, putting them well on their way.
Alvarez says naming rights to the new school are even up for grabs for a significant donor.