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Drexel University welcomes Julie Walters as the new associate vice provost for External Programs.
Walters will work closely with the Provost’s Office, academic deans and Enrollment Management to build the Drexel Network through partnerships with community colleges.
Drexel Network’s mission is to provide an alternative way to achieve a quality Drexel degree, placing University faculty and staff directly on participating campuses. Modeled on the successful partnership with Burlington County College in New Jersey, Drexel will offer academic degrees online, face-to-face and in a hybrid format to students who complete their associates degree at the partner college and who then attend Drexel-led classes on-site at the community college.
Walters will lead the effort to establish three to five new partnerships with 300 to 500 students at each site within the next three to five years.
Walters isn’t new to the University. She has worked with Drexel’s eLearning program since 2011. This experience in particular was appealing to Senior Vice President of Enrollment Management Joan McDonald, who was part of the hiring process, because of the increasing interest in online higher education—and how it contributes to the Drexel Network experience.
“Julie will be the lead person in the University that works with community colleges to establish a relationship that allows their students to pursue a Drexel degree in a traditional face-to-face setting, online or in a hybrid format,” McDonald said.
Walter’s position comes at a crucial time for the University as it strives to continue to maintain access to a Drexel degree.
Walters has an extensive résumé, as she was a practicing attorney for years in California and Pennsylvania before coming to Drexel. This, too, was appealing to McDonald, who said, “When you’re creating these kinds of arrangements between two institutions you are developing a contractual relationship that must be carefully vetted and where the rights and responsibilities of the two colleges must be clearly delineated and articulated. With a background in contract law, Julie will be an asset in developing agreements that benefit students and the two colleges involved in the partnership.”
Walters began her new position June 18.