As of Thursday, West Virginia State University is likely to be one step closer to starting its stand-alone engineering program.
Pending a final approval process, WSVU hopes to offer majors in chemical and civil engineering starting in fall 2018. The curricula will build off the current 2+2 program already in place, where students complete two years of prerequisite and introductory coursework at West Virginia State then transfer to one of two West Virginia University campuses.
The full in-house majors are expected to be approved Thursday by WVSU’s Board of Governors. The university will then need to apply for permission from the regional Higher Learning Commission. West Virginia State’s administration anticipates approval within the next several months.
“We surveyed our current students after we started the 2+2 program,” said Dr. Kumara Jayasuriya, the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs. “All of them wanted to stay here and finish their engineering degree.”
The process to start WVSU’s own programs took motion last year when the administration presented an “intent to plan” to the Board of Governors. The document contained a design for a bachelor of science degree in engineering. At the time, WVSU proposed a civil engineering major. While it received the support of university personnel, the proposal was declined at the state level.
“The commission questioned the civil engineering proposal because West Virginia State lacked appropriate labs to support the program,” explained Matt Turner, executive vice chancellor for administration at the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, or HEPC. “In addition, there were two existing, nearby accredited civil engineering programs offered by other state institutions.” According to Turner, there are two universities in a 30-mile radius that offer degrees in civil engineering.
A year passed, and WVSU’s administration tried again, but this time with a chemical engineering major.
