For the past two months John Petillo, formerly the dean of the Welch Business School at Sacred Heart University, has been serving as the interim-president of the university.
Petillo is in the running for the permanent position, currently under review by a 15-member committee that is chaired by James T. Morley Jr., chairman of the executive committee of the board of trustees for the university. Longtime president Anthony Cernera made an abrupt departure in early November after 22 years in the position.
Morley plans to have the permanent successor named by the start of the fall 2011 semester.
Petillo, who has served on the Sacred Heart board of trustees, is the former chancellor and CEO of Seton Hall University in New Jersey and has held several executive positions in corporations. He plans to keep the university focused and competitive.
“In the last several years there has been an interest by the faculty to expand and develop new programs, especially at the graduate and some at the under graduate levels,” said Petillo.
Petillo said interest in continuing education past the undergraduate level has greatly increased and paralleled the slumping economy.
“There was a huge tendency to go back to school, to either strengthen skills, learn new ones, or continue to hone the ones in development, said Petillo.
The university”™s current major construction project is the construction of a new student center, to give a heavily residential undergraduate community a place to spend time on campus.
“We were really off the mark in regards to students”™ studying/relaxing space on campus,” he said.
Petillo said having thoughtful uses of space can directly affect a school”™s enrollment in terms of showing the school to prospective students considering Sacred Heart.
Finding a balance
“You have to be continually improving, evaluating and augmenting space,” said Petillo. He said for private colleges achieving the right balance of value for students is an ongoing responsibility.
“The issue that we and other colleges have, especially independent or private colleges, is that we”™re butting up against a pricing cap,” said Petillo. “At what point does it become too expensive to attend a private school and how does that price relate to the return they get?”
Petillo said public perception has become that private university tuitions arbitrarily raise rates yearly regardless of performance.
“That can”™t continue,” said Petillo. “We need to be very conscious of the quality issues, and be constantly updating and fine tuning our curricula and make sure the programs are contemporary in not only their pedagogy but also in what the market place in looking for. Although, we should never be training schools, we need to prepare our students with the skills to be marketable in the world.”
Petillo said the proficiencies in communication, written abilities and presentation skills are starting to become the most sought after abilities in the waiting business world.
“Basic skills and common knowledge are important in businesses large and small,” said Petillo. “I think a liberal arts degree is the strongest benefit that you can give your students. It”™s important to know culture, history, geography and customs. We are no longer living in an isolated world.”
A need for core skills
Petillo said executives continue to tell him that specialized skills can be taught but core ones like proper speech, manners and writing need to be intrinsic. He said in that regard internships have become a valuable part of the undergraduate degree.
“Today you must have the applied portion of the equation,” said Petillo.
Sacred Heart business school students are now required to have at least one internship before graduating.
“It”™s an amazing way to focus and hone a student”™s future,” said Petillo. “It”™s also a benefit to the business community and local economy.”
Petillo said the conversation between higher education and the business community needs to be more open and consistent.
“We need to know what is being looked for and they need to see the value of having a university here as a resource,” said Petillo. “I”™m a firm believer that attending Sacred Heart needs to be more than the 15 credit hours a semester; you need to develop a comprehensive culture of learning in an institution.”
