Once admitted to both Brite and the Neeley School of Business, students are able to select from a shared set of elective courses to earn enough credits for two degrees. The partnership courses begin in fall 2012.
“We’ve developed a framework in which MBA students have electives within their study program that can be satisfied by courses offered by Brite, and Brite students can fill their electives with courses from the business school,” explains Nancy Ramsay.
The vision behind the initiative is to support students who are vocationally called to interdisciplinary career opportunities. Examples would be a department director for a faith-based non-profit organization, a minister who serves a church on weekends but also holds a secondary position Monday through Friday or a staff person who manages office operations for a large church.
Jeff Williams, Brite’s associate dean for academic affairs, said Brite regularly fields inquiries from prospective students about the potential for joint study programs.
“This program allows Brite to respond to shifting student interests and join a growing trend within theological education to become more engaged in other disciplines,” he said. “Brite has a reputation as a place where people who have interdisciplinary interests are welcomed. This type of program underscores who we are as an institution.”
The partnership also opens the doors to collaborative learning activities, research and scholarship. “New ideas are sure to emerge. As faculty members become better acquainted with one another, they may develop new courses, co-teach, collaborate on research and writing projects, or find other ways to partner,” Ramsay said. “The results are sure to be enriching beyond our imagining.”
Since the arrangement with the Neeley School is non-exclusive or proprietary, Brite may use the underlying structure to explore similar partnerships with other schools or develop innovative ways to integrate theological education with other fields of study.
“Part of Brite’s future is serving those who benefit from theological education, which is a much larger group than those called to ministry,” Williams said. “Other fields, such as nursing, education, law and social work, are starting to realize that the people they serve and their services have a spiritual component.”
Brite is demonstrating its readiness to work with students who have interdisciplinary vocational interests and its willingness to establish relationships with institutions with respected educational programs, Ramsay said.
“Brite’s location on a university campus and within a metropolitan area places us in a wonderful position to partner with other institutions,” she said. “We are imagining new ways for students from Brite and elsewhere to learn together and our faculties to work together.”