The Log | School News
Eight Environmental Professionals Launch DEL-MEM Class of
2006
by Jean Lynch, MEM '06
In August, before the annual orientation
for incoming MEM students, the Nicholas School welcomed the
other MEM class of 2006. Eight U.S. students launched the
first Duke Environmental Leadership MEM program, which will
offer these established environmental professionals the chance
to earn a Nicholas School MEM degree without spending two
years away from their homes or jobs.
“This is a program for professionals
who are already working in the field, who want more training
and leadership experience to move up the ladder in their organizations,”
says Sara Ashenburg, the program’s director.
A structured combination of distance
and on-campus learning allows these students to remain fully
matriculated Duke degree candidates while keeping their positions
at environmental jobs in Alaska, Florida, Virginia, Washington,
D.C., New Jersey, Connecticut, and North Carolina. Coursework
is conducted through a combination of on-line courses taught
by Nicholas School faculty and five weeklong group sessions
on campus, and like any other MEM student, candidates are
required to complete a Master’s Project.
The logistics of the degree would
sound very familiar to any on-campus Nicholas School student:
Students access coursework through the Blackboard system and
are expected to keep up with the course syllabus, complete
work assignments on time, and adhere to the Duke University
Honor Code.
Courses now under way are Ecosystem
Science and Management with Norman
L. Christensen Jr., and Economics of Environmental
Management with Randall
Kramer. Because smoothly functioning technology
is so vital to the program’s success, the school issues students
a laptop loaded with all necessary software, and an IT staff
member is dedicated to solving any access or hardware problems
they may encounter.
The rigorous academic standards
of the DEL program make it unique in the nation—as Ashenburg
points out, the degree is approved at the university level
and course curricula are evaluated and held to the same standards
as any other Nicholas School class. No similar environmental
degree program is offered by any other prestigious university
in the country.
The DEL program requires 30 credits
for completion, rather than the traditional MEM program’s
48. This reflects the students’ status as working professionals.
Ashenburg says, “Our admission criteria require five years
of relevant work experience in the field, so we’re essentially
awarding 118 credits for significant work experience.”
The current group of DEL-MEM students
averages more than 110 years of experience. In addition, leadership
training is a strong component of all on-campus visits, the
idea being that students should use their training to grow
in leadership roles at work. Several members of the inaugural
class are receiving significant financial assistance from
their employers. For more information,contact the DEL program
office at 919-613-8082 or del@nicholas.duke.edu
or visit www.nicholas.duke.edu/del
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