In the context of the announcement, Lehman College provost and senior vice president for academic affairs and student success, Peter O. Nwosu, said,  “The new school, whose niche will include entrepreneurship, small business development, and experiential learning, builds on Lehman’s already strong reputation within the business community and will serve as a major pipeline for preparing diverse talent from underrepresented populations for local, regional, national, and international workforce needs.”  

Nwosu added, “Establishing a School of Business signals to students, prospective students, and employers that we are committed to producing skilled graduates who have real-world experience, a global perspective, and a capacity for creative problem-solving in an industry that continues to evolve.”

Among a student body of more than 14,000 students, the department of economics and business has a total of 1,802 declared majors, at both graduate and undergraduate level. The new school will launch with three new departments: Accounting; Management and Business Innovation; and Economics, Finance, and Information Systems, and will offer five different degrees: a business bachelor of arts, a bachelor of arts, a bachelor of science, a master of science in business, and a master of science in accounting.

Students will choose from seven concentrations, including accounting, finance, marketing, human resource management, business law, international business, and business economics. They will receive instruction from 23 full-time faculty, transferred from the school of natural and social science, which is where the current economics and business department currently exists. More can be read here. 

Additionally, the college is offering a new path to a degree for formerly incarcerated students. In conjunction with the nonprofit, Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, the college will help formerly incarcerated students complete degrees they had started while in the corrections system. The initiative was formalized at a memorandum of understanding signing ceremony in December.

Of the new initiative, Nwosu said, “Lehman’s partnership with Hudson Link is an expression of the college’s vision and humanitarian values.” He added, “Many of our Bronx neighbors are impacted by the criminal justice system in some way, and our work with Hudson Link will further Lehman’s mission to serve The Bronx community, create educational and economic opportunity, and transform lives.” 

With the MOU in place, Lehman becomes the 10th college to collaborate with Hudson Link, which sponsors college degree-granting programs in five prisons across New York State and reentry support to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. However, unlike the organization’s existing partners, which offer degree programs within prisons, Lehman will focus on helping students finish their degrees after their release through the College’s Adult Degree Program. Read more here.