Spotlight On: Ali Houshmand, President, Rowan University

Spotlight On: Ali Houshmand, President, Rowan University

2022-08-15T12:12:25-04:00August 15th, 2022|Economy, Education, South Jersey|

3 min read August 2022With Invest:, Ali Houshmand, president of Rowan University, discussed the evolution of higher education to meet the demands of innovative industries and how a college degree must be more accessible to ensure a more advanced society. “Higher education has to do a major overhaul of the way we’ve been doing things,” said Houshmand.

What have been the key milestones for Rowan University over the past twelve months?

Our biggest achievement in the past year has been getting support from the state to open a new school of veterinary medicine, which would be the first in New Jersey and will include a fully operational animal hospital. Additionally, we have partnered with Virtua Health to create a world-class health science college. Virtua invested $85 million into the partnership, which will lead to the creation of a research facility that we will add over $200 million in investment over the next 10 years. This facility will act as an academic medical center with research, clinical practice and education all happening under one roof.

Looking forward, how do you see eds and meds growing in South Jersey?

I truly feel that biomedicine and life sciences are the future of the world economy. Globally, we are seeing food and water shortages, environmental issues and the evolving obstacles with how we treat disease. And as the population grows while resources continue to strain, it will be science that can feed people and keep them healthy. The industries that will spin out from the growth of life sciences will also have positive economic impacts on the region as more jobs and new businesses are created. I see the future in this, not just for Rowan but any educational institution.  

What are the most significant challenges facing higher education right now?

The issue of affordability and access is serious because the cost of higher education is getting out of reach for many people. There can be no such thing as a highly advanced society if there are so many haves and have nots. Education is clearly tied to better living outcomes, so it is on every college and university to make that more accessible. There is also the practical matter of whether it makes sense for students to spend four to six years on a degree without a true guarantee that they’ll find a job in that field. Is this a good investment for the average student? This is a question the higher education sector needs to face in order to make things right and equitable. We need to find a way to train a workforce that fits the needs of the economy.

We also face challenges from major industries and companies like Amazon and Google which offer their own courses and certifications and training in lieu of going to universities. Higher education has to do a major overhaul of the way we’ve been doing things. Our universities were developed during an agrarian era 200 years ago and not much has changed since then. From semester structures to degrees and credentials, it has looked about the same. The new workforce demands lifelong education that keeps them up to date on skills, technology, and opportunities in their field, and higher education must be more responsive to this.

What are your thoughts on how the cost of education can be reined in?

The problem with the out of control costs of education right now is that higher education leaders have not traditionally been trained to be business leaders. They’ve always learned how to work with more money, and if they were short they would ask the state or federal government for more funding, or pass along the cost to students. For many universities, if there was a budget shortfall they would increase tuition by a percentage to balance it. That’s how it was always done. Moving forward, higher education leaders must be more responsible with how money is being invested, managing budgets in a way that can save on costs from the beginning.

In an effort to keep education costs down for current and future students, starting Fall 2022 we will offer free tuition to any family making $65,000 or less per year. This same incentive goes for any student who graduates from a county college and transfers to Rowan. For families making up to $80,000, students will only have to pay a maximum tuition of $7,500 per year. Rowan University wants a level playing field where everyone has an ability to get a degree without being burdened with massive debt.

What have been the most significant changes at Rowan University over the past 10 years?

In 10 years, we have gone from 1,600 employees to 3,900 while our enrollment has grown from 11,000 to 23,000. In that time, our budget has grown from $200 million to $620 million, and our endowment reserve has gone from $230 million to $611 million. When I started here, the highest degree we offered was a master’s, but we have since been designated as a Research II university that is ranked No. 88 nationally among public research institutions. 10 years ago, our campus facilities looked old and we had millions in deferred maintenance. Since then, our partners and Rowan have invested approximately $1.5 billion in new facilities and have plans for a billion more. Our growth has been monumental.

For more information, visit: https://www.rowan.edu/ 

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