50 is nifty

Chantelle R. Dishon Budur, Au.D., received her diploma at January 6 Commencement exercises. Photo by Desirée Stover

TU celebrates half century of graduate

education, looks to future

In 1958 a gallon of gas cost 24 cents, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 3, Elvis dominated the Top 10 charts ... and TU introduced its first graduate program.

Tuition was $10 per credit hour, with a $2 registration fee.

A half-century later, the university enrolls approximately 3,600 students in nearly 70 graduate degree and certificate programs, including four doctoral programs.

Lawrence Shirley, associate dean of the College of Graduate Studies and Research, emphasizes graduate education’s role in fulfilling TU’s metropolitan university mission. “Our programs are designed to address community and work force needs,” he says. “There is an enormous—and growing demand—for graduate education.”

According to Frances Bond, professor emeritus of education, the then-State Teachers College at Towson secured permission to launch a Master of Education in Elementary Education degree program for two reasons: It was well suited to offer graduate courses and it offered a convenient location for a large segment of the state’s teacher population.

From an entering class of 67, Bond was one of the first four students to receive the M.Ed. degree in 1960. She went on to join the College of Education faculty, later serving as department chair and associate dean.

The university continued to add graduate programs in education and psychology during  the ’60s. The ’70s saw the inclusion of science- and health-related offerings, including biology for teachers, speech-language pathology for schools, clinical and experimental psychology, and health science.  The ’80s heralded a wider breadth of offerings, such as human resource management, professional studies, professional writing, studio art, and music performance. Technology was the persistent theme of the ’90s, as TU launched programs in computer science, applied and industrial mathematics, and applied informational technology. Meanwhile, women’s studies grew out of one of the nation’s earliest research centers in that area.

The Graduate School has seen its greatest period of growth since 2000, with the addition of  14 new master’s programs—including the M.S. in Homeland Security, the UB/Towson MBA, and the M.S. in Forensic Chemistry—and 24 certificate programs. TU now offers doctoral programs in applied information technology, audiology, instructional technology, and occupational science.

As evidence of how far graduate education has progressed in a half century, TU now offers a highly evolved version of 1958’s Master of Education degree in Shanghai, China.

On April 29 about 200 current and former graduate-school affiliates convened to celebrate the 50th anniversary. Among the speakers were President Caret, Provost Clements, Acting Dean Chao Lu and Fran Bond.

For more information about graduate education at TU, go to College of Graduate Studies and Research.

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