Drexel adds 3 new schools

Drexel University has established new schools of education, biomedical engineering and environmental science as part of a restructuring program recently approved by the Drexel Board of Trustees Executive Committee. The restructuring incorporates existing programs while expanding Drexel's undergraduate offerings. The Biomedical Engineering and Science Institute has been converted into the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems. Interim Director Banu Onaral said the school will offer undergraduate degrees and enrich its existing graduate curriculum. "The school will expand to offer undergraduate programs while modernizing and extending graduate programs," she said. Onaral said the school will focus on health systems technology, environmental health, biomedical information and communications and tissue biotechnology engineering. She added that the new school will allow students to participate in internships with local medical institutions as part of Drexel's "co-op" program. Onaral explained that talks about establishing a new school began when a group of faculty members expressed the need to reorganize existing programs and expand course offerings on the undergraduate level. She said the university's administration supported the proposal and the implementation process has already begun, with the new school beginning operations later this month. "We hope the new school will allow us to attract students who are interested in the biological and medical fields as well as health systems," she said. Drexel is also in the process of establishing a School of Environmental Science, Engineering and Policy. Director Michael Gealt called the new school an "outgrowth" of the existing Environmental Science Institute graduate program. Gealt said the school will focus on hazardous waste treatment, water treatment, air pollution and environmental assessment. He said he anticipates development of an undergraduate major in Environmental Engineering within the year, in addition to dual degree programs with Civil and Chemical Engineering. Drexel already offers an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science, but Gealt said he hopes the school will expand its offerings to include environmental policy. Drexel has also established a School of Education within the College of Arts and Sciences, combining three existing programs, according to Larry Keiser, program coordinator for Teacher Education. Drexel has undergraduate and graduate education programs offering teacher certification in math and science and is preparing to launch a doctoral program in teacher education at the beginning of the summer. Drexel's Diagnostic Mathematics and Science Learning Lab is also part of the new school. The lab is designed to give Drexel education students the opportunity to tutor students in grades three through 12 who are having trouble with math or who are not being sufficiently challenged by math classes. The Drexel Center for Learning and Instruction -- which provides academic support for Drexel students -- is also part of the new school. "The purpose of the school is to provide educational leadership," Keiser said. "The school will have an educational leadership focus using technology as a teaching tool, staying with Drexel's strength."