It’s been a three year wait. And St. Joseph’s College at Rensselaer, IN is announcing its plan to move forward. Alumni of St. Joseph's College have learned the plan for the future of the school. The school's Board of Trustees approved a three-year plan that’s aimed at bringing life back to campus.

SJC spokesperson Dr. William Carroll said this plan is the future of small liberal arts colleges.

"Those colleges that are not flexible will die. Those who are able to change quickly and nimbly will survive for the future," he said. "Our goal is not to recreate St. Joseph's of 2015. Our goal is to create a St. Joseph's of the future."
Dr. Carroll said that when the school closed down in 2017, the board promised that staff would submit a plan by the end of 2019 for review. He said the plan will move the college forward with two parts.

Part one is the University Center. This will start with a two-year associate degree anchor program that can either stand on its own, funnel into a bachelor’s degree at Saint Joseph’s, or transfer out to one of the college's partner institutions. Dr. Carroll said he's currently working to expand that list of institutions.

SJC has partnered with Ivy Tech and started offering classes at the Rensselaer campus in January.

The statement SJC released about the plan says the goal is to start offering these courses with partners in the fall of 2021, and has plans to expand the University Center to offer four-year bachelor's programs by the fall of 2023.
Part two of the plan is called the Career College, which is focused on providing students with professional certifications.

The goal is for St. Joseph's College to be ready to reapply for Accreditation Eligibility Status in spring of 2024.

Dr. Carroll said they are also open to feedback about the plan. He said people can contact their new communications director, alumna Beth Graf, at the college phone number. Or he said you can email him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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