Kent State College of Podiatric Medicine will offer an Executive Master of Business Administration starting in May 2014.

The 23-month program will take place on the College of Podiatric Medicine’s campus in Independence, Ohio. Deborah Spake, dean of the College of Business Administration, said she is pleased the program will be offered at a Kent State medical facility. Spake said by offering the program at the College of Podiatric Medicine, professionals don’t have to go to a competitor’s facility to take coursework.

“We’re delighted to be able to partner with the College of Podiatric Medicine to offer the Executive MBA for Healthcare,” Spake said. “By offering the program at a location that is centrally located and close to where many people live and work, we’re being responsive to the needs of the market.”

KSU hopes to attract healthcare professionals who are interested in furthering their education, said Laurie Walker, Kent State’s director of executive MBA programs. Walker said The Executive MBA for Health-Care Professionals program will put people in a position to meet the challenges of today’s health care workplace.

“With all the changes occurring in health care, this partnership is very important,” Walker said. “Knowing all of the changes that have come with health care reform and the need for professionals to understand more about the business aspects of healthcare, this is the ideal transition for people to gain those skills.”

The executive MBA features a curriculum created to meet the demands and challenges of today’s health care professional, said Bryan Caldwell, interim dean at the College of Podiatric Medicine. Caldwell, who has been with the school since 1994, said he is very excited to see that the College of Business Administration will be sharing the College of Podiatric Medicine’s state-of-the-art facility to offer the MBA for health-care professionals.

“I hope this venture is the first of many collaborative efforts between the College of Podiatric Medicine and other colleges at Kent State University,” Caldwell said. “As we share resources and ideas interdepartmentally, we fulfill our mission of excellence and create programs to better serve our students and the community.”

Contact Terrell Johnson at [email protected].