Strayer University, AT&T partner to offer employees college study options - Tech Talk

Black Issues in Higher Education, July 3, 2003 by Ronald Roach

ARLINGTON, VA.

Strayer University, a for-profit multi-campus university specializing in the working adult academic market, has announced an agreement with AT&T Corp. that offers AT&T employees the opportunity to earn college degrees through Strayer University Online.

Margie Phillips, the manager of AT&T's Tuition Assistance Plan, says the agreement with Strayer University offers AT&T employees who are eligible to participate in the company's educational program the flexibility in earning college degrees in a manner that meets their individual schedules. The agreement began with the start of Strayer University's spring 2003 quarter. AT&T is one of the largest voice, video and data communications companies in the world.

"We have employees coast-to-coast who need the flexibility of earning accredited college degrees on terms that are convenient for their personal and professional lives," Phillips says. "AT&T teams with accredited, postsecondary institutions that have demonstrated their ability to offer degree programs to a maximum number of our employees."

Strayer University offers accredited online courses in all 50 states and 60 countries worldwide, allowing students to combine traditional classroom instruction with online study or pursue a degree completely online. The university provides undergraduate and graduate degrees in business administration, accounting and information technology (see Black Issues, Oct. 24, 2002). It's estimated that the distance-learning market is growing 40 percent annually with approximately 350,000 students, or 2 percent of total U.S. higher education enrollments, and generating $1.75 billion annually, according to the Boston-based research firm Eduventures.

"One of the most important advantages of online education for many business professionals is the ability to continue their studies even if they move to a new city for career reasons," says Pamela Bell, the director of Strayer University Online. "With Strayer University Online, it doesn't matter where you work or live. Courses and professors are only a PC and a modern away."

Accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, Strayer University, based in Arlington, Va., tailors its programs to working adults who are unable to attend school full time. The university was founded in 1892 and operates 23 campuses in Washington, D.C., Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and Tennessee, serving more than 16,700 students.