A SMT News Report

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - The Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents met Friday and approved a new program – a master of science degree in organizational management and a new minor in biological and medical sciences entrepreneurship, and deleted the adult health clinical nurse specialist/care manager option from the master of science nursing degree.

New Program – Master of Science in Organizational Management

The new master of science degree in organizational management will be offered through Southeast’s Donald L. Harrison College of Business beginning in fall 2012. Dr. Ron Rosati, Southeast provost, says the degree will fill a major educational need in Southeast’s service area that currently is not available.

“The degree is especially well suited for people who do not have a major at the undergraduate level in business administration but are employed in positions with managerial responsibilities,” he said.”The additional management training will allow them to better perform in their current position and advance to mid-level managerial positions.”

The degree focuses on management and excludes accounting, finance, marketing, economics and management information systems.

Rosati said the master of science in organizational management is intended for people who are currently in or are seeking a supervisory management level in retailing, services and related business sectors. “The Harrison College of Business is well suited to provide the program because of the excellent faculty and facilities associated with the college,” Rosati said.

Most of the courses associated with the program, except for one new additional course, are available and being offered within the college, he said. Additional sections of the courses will need to be offered to meet the expected demand for the new program, he said, as most of the courses in the proposed program are enrolled at capacity most semesters.

New Minor – Biological and Medical Sciences Entrepreneurship

The new minor in the biological and medical sciences will be offered by the Department of Biology in the College of Science and Mathematics and the Department of Management and Marketing in the Donald L. Harrison College of Business beginning in the fall of this year.

“There is increasing awareness that students graduating in the biological and medical sciences would benefit from knowledge of entrepreneurial processes and a more entrepreneurial mindset,” Rosati said.

He said many of Southeast’s biological and medical sciences graduates find themselves involved with biotechnology start-up ventures or are involved with existing biotechnology and medical-related firms through an ownership position in an existing small, developing company, related to their research program. He said students from other areas who have particular interest in the sciences likely will be attracted to this minor.

No new courses or extra faculty resources are required for the minor, he said.

Deletion of Option – Master of Science in Nursing – Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist/Care Manager Option

The deletion of the adult health clinical nurse specialist/care manager option from the master of science in nursing degree will take effect in August.

Historically, the option has been offered every other year, Rosati said, alternating with the nurse educator option. Enrollment has varied from four to six students per cohort, he said.

Current requirements for preparation of this advanced practice role would require significant curricular revisions within the specialty courses to include additional content for graduates to implement this advanced practice role as currently defined by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists, according to Rosati. Clinical resources, as well as clinical preceptors who are practicing in the Clinical Nurse Specialist role within the local area, are very limited, he said.

“The low number of possible enrollees in the option and the constaints on graduate class size during this economic recession support the decision to delete this option from the MSN program,” he said.