Historically Black Xavier University in New Orleans has entered into a partnership with Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, that will enable students to earn a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in management in five years.
This unique “4+1” joint partnership calls for a 5-year program (4 years of undergraduate studies at Xavier plus 1 year of graduate management education at Lehigh University). Students at Xavier University majoring in liberal arts or STEM fields can enter Lehigh University’s master’s degree program in management earning their graduate-level degree in just 10 months. Accepted Xavier Univerity students will be guaranteed generous scholarships in support of their graduate educational endeavors.
Georgette Chapman Phillips, the Kevin L. and Lisa A. Clayton Dean of the Lehigh University College of Business, stated that “this partnership with Xavier is part of a concerted effort by our college faculty and university leadership to not only attract the best and brightest students, but in the process, to elevate the importance of having a learning setting that is diverse, inclusive, and equitable. The combination simply makes for a more enriching student experience.”
“Xavier is proud to join Lehigh University in partnership to provide opportunities that further develop the talents of our students as they enter the workforce,” added Reynold Verret, president of Xavier University of Louisiana. “Lehigh’s and Xavier’s commitment to educating the leaders of tomorrow is exemplary of the more just and humane society that we teach our students to seek.”
African Americans make up just 4 percent of the nearly 6,000-member undergraduate student body at Lehigh University, according to the most recent data available from the U.S. Department of Education. Lehigh enrolls nearly 1,800 graduate students.
