Concordia University Wisconsin closed its Appleton, Madison and Milwaukee centers. Here's why.
AnnMarie HiltonConcordia University Wisconsin closed three satellite campus centers throughout the state at the end of January, including its Appleton location on College Avenue.
Even though the doors closed at the Appleton, Madison and Milwaukee (Miller Parkway) centers on Jan. 31, the university has and will continue to serve students who used those locations through virtual instruction. The centers were mainly used for continuing education programs and other adult learners.
The main Mequon campus remains open.
While virtual learning was a "steep" adjustment for many students, over time, the students in the continuing education programs housed at the satellite centers came to prefer online learning over in-person, according to a letter from the university obtained by The Post-Crescent.
"Over time, most of our accelerated students came to prefer the flexibility and expanded course offerings that our online format affords," the letter said.
The letter, written by then interim president Bill Cario, said closing the centers to in-person learning allows the university to be "better stewards" of its resources by creating more financial opportunities and course offerings.
"... The centers have allowed us to promote Concordia’s educational mission to communities that might not have otherwise had access to a Concordia education. But as with many things in education, the centers’ time has passed," Cario wrote in the letter.
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Reach AnnMarie Hilton at ahilton@gannett.com or 920-370-8045. Follow her on Twitter at @hilton_annmarie.