By Jennifer Price
Between overseeing all the music and art programs for Hampton City Schools and teaching art appreciation at Langley Air Force Base, Vivian Griese is a very busy woman.
So when she needed to get a post master’s certificate in educational leadership and administration, she looked for a program that would be convenient and supportive of her already hectic schedule.
Her solution?
George Washington’s Hampton Roads Center.
Located 180 miles from Foggy Bottom in Newport News, Va., the center has offered graduate programs to working professionals since the 1960s.
“I cannot speak highly enough of them,” says Ms. Griese. “They worked with my schedule and supported me every step of the way.”
After completing the six classes for her post master’s certificate, she decided to pursue her doctorate in educational administration and policy studies so that she can eventually work in higher education.
Because most of the 315 students at the Hampton Roads Center are working full time, classes are only scheduled during evenings and weekends. Students enrolled in one of the center’s three master’s degree programs take classes one evening a week, while students pursuing their doctorate in engineering management and educational administration and policy studies take classes one weekend a month.
“The hours are convenient, the classes are convenient, and the teachers and staff have been wonderful and very supportive,” says Donna Cox, who is working toward an education specialist degree in leadership and administration. “I feel like they treat me like a professional rather than just a student.”
The center offers master’s degrees in educational administration, human resource development and engineering management. Beginning this fall, the center will offer a master’s degree in security and safety leadership. Graduate certificates are offered in organizational learning and change, human resource development and design and assessment of adult learning.
There are five full-time faculty members at the Hampton Roads Center along with several adjunct professors. But each semester, about four faculty members who are based in Foggy Bottom make a weekend trip to teach courses in Newport News.
In addition to GW’s Foggy Bottom, Mount Vernon and Virginia Science and Technology campuses, there are graduate centers, like the Hampton Roads Center, in Arlington and Alexandria. Graduate-level courses are also taught in Virginia Beach and Mechanicsville, Va.
“The days of being able to take a sabbatical to go get your master’s degree are pretty much gone,” says Greg Logan, director of the Hampton Roads Center. “It’s not a possibility for the majority of working men and women so they are looking for convenience.”
GW began offering engineering classes at the NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. in the late 1950s. In 1965, GW opened its first center at Fort Monroe, also in Hampton, where graduate courses were offered in business, education and engineering. Undergraduate courses in business administration and psychology were also available. In 1970, GW moved off the military base and opened a center in Hampton before moving to its current location in Newport News in 1999.
Ashby Kilgore, Ed.D. ’96, says she took GW’s reputation into account when choosing a doctorate program.
“I knew the reputation of GW was very respected around the country and in Virginia,” says Dr. Kilgore, who is now the superintendent of the Newport News School District. “There’s no doubt that my doctorate has furthered my career. The coursework was so meaningful and related to what I do every day in the world of schools.”