Rhodes College is discontinuing its Master of Arts in Urban Education program effective July 1, 2022, says Dr. Katherine Bassard, provost and vice president for academic affairs, due to loss of external funding. “The decision to end the program is a difficult one,” says Bassard. “Ultimately it was decided it would be in the best interest of students and faculty to retain the popular and effective undergraduate curriculum while not trying to maintain a graduate program without the necessary resources.”
Rhodes will not be recruiting students in the Master of Arts in Urban Education program for fall 2022 and beyond. “We remain absolutely committed to supporting students currently enrolled in the program and to giving them an opportunity to complete their degrees,” says Bassard. All 18 students currently in the M.A. program are set to graduate in 2022. Academic Affairs is working closely with the faculty and graduate students and has consulted with the relevant faculty committees about this decision.
Rhodes offers only one other graduate program—the Master of Science in Accounting—which boasts a highly successful job placement rate for students following graduation. The Master of Arts in Urban Education was designed to address the present and growing need for high-impact, culturally relevant educators in diverse urban schools.
The college will continue to have a thriving Educational Studies undergraduate program. “The college will be retaining the excellent faculty and keeping its strong undergraduate program, which strives to produce future teachers, researchers, and education policy makers who earn hands-on experience in local Memphis and regional school systems and which has a state-approved licensure component,” says Bassard. “We are proud of the continuing work of our educational studies faculty and students and looking forward to their continued success.”