SPRINGFIELD — Several changes are coming to American International College during the next several years in the form of a “Pathway to Progress” plan that the school unveiled last month.
The initiative, described as an organizational business plan, presents a wide array of changes to the college’s operational model including “updating its academic portfolio, expanding degree options, launching new enrollment strategies and streamlining athletics.”
Nicole Cestero, the interim president for AIC, said in an interview that the plan was created in response to the ever-changing landscape of higher education. She named things like the new FAFSA rollout, COVID-19’s impact on higher education and AIC’s own population changes at the graduate and undergraduate level as some of the many reasons why the college wanted to develop an initiative to address its present and future.
“We wanted to make sure that we made a plan that makes AIC relevant in the future and sustains the institution,” Cestero said.
According to the school, the plan was created after months of analysis and planning with an internationally recognized consulting firm.
The firm met with a steering committee of AIC leadership on a biweekly basis presenting market research, industry trends, and financial analysis “to chart a sustainable future” for AIC. Based on this analysis and review of potential paths forward, recommendations were provided to the Board of Trustees by senior management, discussed and approved for implementation.
Cestero said the hope is to have everything finished in the Pathways to Progress plan by fiscal year 2028.
‘Revising the academic portfolio’
A big portion of the college’s plan is dedicated to a multi-year expansion of degree options based on “industry demand and market research.” Cestero would not provide information on every new program the college will unveil in the future, but she said that there will be seven new undergraduate majors, two new undergraduate certificate programs, two doctoral programs and about seven to eight master’s programs that feature a combination of online, hybrid and in-person classes.
“It really depends on what the program is in terms of how we’re offering it,” Cestero said. “But we’re trying to do a mix of different things.”
The college has already begun its introduction of new courses, according to Cestero. Recently, the college unveiled online master’s programs in population and community health practice and sport and human performance to “address the growing need for skilled professionals in the fields of community health and athletic performance.” The college said they are currently accepting applications for those courses.
In addition to the expansion of programs, the college will also discontinue certain programs at the school for reasons relating to course redundancy, lack of interest, or because the college is planning to unveil a different iteration of that program.
Cestero said the college is eliminating accounting, human biology, integrated studies, their bachelor’s degree in occupational science, master’s degree in cannabis science and commerce, clinical psychology and counseling psychology, master’s in exercise science, master’s in public health and the educational track in their Master of Nursing program.
The college will maintain the clinical track in its Master of Nursing program, according to Cestero, because it is a “very strong program.”
Cestero said that the decision to slash clinical psychology and counseling psychology from the school is because AIC already has similar programs that are license-based, and therefore more valuable for students.
She also added that although the college is eliminating their current iteration of exercise science and public health, the college will eventually unveil similar programs in those fields, including a more “community-based” program in the public health realm.
“We’re finding that that’s what our students want, and it’s really what’s needed, especially in this area,” Cestero said, when talking about the future of the public health program at AIC.
The faculty side of it
Despite a lot of revising of the academic portfolio, Cestero said no full-time faculty positions will be eliminated, and students currently enrolled in slashed programs will be able to finish out their degree in those same programs.
“So, if you came in this year, this fall, with a major in accounting, you will graduate four years from now with a degree in accounting,” Cestero said. “We’re not taking that away from current students, we’re just not bringing new students into the program.”
To accommodate these academic portfolio changes, the college plans to expand faculty options by introducing new multi-year contracts, including a new professor of practice role, alongside the existing tenure-track pathway and adjunct/part-time professor roles.
Most full-time faculty, according to the college, will shift to a 5/5 teaching load to better meet academic demands, with course registration moving to the staff advisors.
Cestero said the change in the academic portfolio was done in conjunction with faculty program directors and deans.
“There was input from different areas within the institution on the academic side in putting this together,” Cestero said.
Changes to athletics
The other major changes in the Pathway to Progress plan revolves around changes in sports.
The college announced that, following the 2024-25 season, the men’s hockey program will move to NCAA Division II from Division I for budgetary reasons and to provide “a more equitable distribution of resources among all athletic programs.”
The rest of the athletic programs at the school are Division II.
The hockey team has been a part of Division I for the past 27 years.
In mid-November, Coach Eric Lang posted a comprehensive statement to X reacting to this change for the program.
“The information shared with me today by our administration is saddening for all who have touched our program,” Lang said. “No longer competing at the highest level, especially considering the incredible success we’ve had as a team over the past six years, is tough to grasp.”
Lang called AIC his home for 15 years as a player, graduate assistant and head coach of the team, and thanked every player, staff member and alumnus that he has coached and worked alongside with over the past nine years.
“While this news is difficult, I am committed to turning the page quickly,” Lang said. “Our current team deserves every ounce of energy and support from our staff over the next four and a half months. Our goals remain unchanged. We are determined to win Atlantic Hockey and earn a spot in the NCAA tournament.”
The college also announced the elimination of the men’s wrestling team and women’s tennis team effective in May, a decision that Cestero said was made based on data from admissions, team competition, total enrollment, team budget roster sizes, operating costs and overall net tuition revenue per team.
For women’s tennis in particular, Cestero said that lack of playable tennis courts and a struggle to field a team were main reasons for slashing the team, while travel and operating costs were major reasons for eliminating the men’s wrestling squad.
“When we looked at all of that data, and we looked at it historically, it led us to the teams that we know we have struggled with for many years, and that either weren’t bringing in any revenue or were bringing in very limited revenue,” said Cestero, who added that all scholarships for affected athletes will be honored following this transition with all three sports. Immediately following the announcement of these changes, members of the wrestling team began campaigning to maintain their team through a GoFundMe page called “Keep Our Future Alive” and a goal of raising $250,000.
The page said that the program has had an all-time high with prospects and recruits, and their social media exposure has skyrocketed.
“Just within the first two meets into the season, we have seen exponential growth from the previous years to now. There is so much more growth this program has coming in the next few years; help us show AIC and the wrestling community we deserve to stay and put AIC back on the map,” the page reads.
Some members of the AIC wrestling community voiced their concerns regarding the college’s decision on social media, with some sharing that the AIC wrestling needs to be maintained because it is a “second home.”
“I know the news of our team being disbanded at the end of the season is hard to take,” said head coach Darby McLaughlin in a statement. “But I want you to know this: the bonds we’ve built, the battles we’ve fought together, and the lessons we learned-those don’t end with the season.”
According to the GoFundMe page, if AIC does not accept their raised funds, then the money will go toward the Boys and Girls Club of Springfield.
In her interview with Reminder Publishing, Cestero said the elimination of these programs means additional funds will go to other varsity sports, but she did not know which ones as of press time.
Other aspects of the plan
The Pathway to Progress plan also includes new three-year, 120-credit bachelor’s degree options for a variety of undergraduate programs to provide time and financial savings to students, as well as a comprehensive re-enrollment campaign to engage and recruit former students to return to AIC and complete their degrees.
The latter program will be unveiled in 2025, according to the college.
