Spring Break
New period for adult education program at UC Berkeley
Matt Krupnick - Contra Costa Times
Issue date: 3/7/07 Section: Career Fair
(BERKELEY) - MCT - In 2000, shortly before California's high-tech economy went belly-up, the UC Berkeley Extension catalog was a 376-page book.
Today's catalog is a lighter read, at just 144 pages, and listings of computer- and electronic engineering-related courses have dropped from about 90 pages to 10. With about 1,000 fewer courses than it had in 2002, the fee-financed UC Berkeley Extension owes more than $10 million in borrowed funds to its parent campus, a couple of blocks away on University Avenue.
And last year 34,601 students enrolled, about 27,000 less than in 2000-01. For the 116-year-old program, a page has turned, and administrators are looking forward to more efficiency and relevance in the off-campus classes targeted for working adults.
"Really, we're entering a new period," said James Sherwood, who recently completed his role as the program's dean. His new role on the UC Berkeley campus is studying the future of extension programs.
"What California really needs to do is research what role continuing education is going to play in the future, particularly at a research-intensive institution like the University of California at Berkeley."
Extension courses have tackled everything from agriculture to human resources, and even the diminished program at Berkeley offers a range of options. Students can learn whether brie pairs well with Pouilly Fuisse wine or how to build a garden path.
But the program, which is supposed to sustain itself with fees, was geared heavily toward technology classes during the dot-com days. That strategy proved disastrous when tech companies started shutting down, leaving Extension with fewer students needing updates on the latest software and systems.
With at least a year generally needed to start new Extension courses, administrators had trouble adapting to the rapidly changing economy. The program kept spending money on courses that became harder sells with each corporate failure, said Judah Rosenwald, Extension's finance chief.
Today's catalog is a lighter read, at just 144 pages, and listings of computer- and electronic engineering-related courses have dropped from about 90 pages to 10. With about 1,000 fewer courses than it had in 2002, the fee-financed UC Berkeley Extension owes more than $10 million in borrowed funds to its parent campus, a couple of blocks away on University Avenue.
And last year 34,601 students enrolled, about 27,000 less than in 2000-01. For the 116-year-old program, a page has turned, and administrators are looking forward to more efficiency and relevance in the off-campus classes targeted for working adults.
"Really, we're entering a new period," said James Sherwood, who recently completed his role as the program's dean. His new role on the UC Berkeley campus is studying the future of extension programs.
"What California really needs to do is research what role continuing education is going to play in the future, particularly at a research-intensive institution like the University of California at Berkeley."
Extension courses have tackled everything from agriculture to human resources, and even the diminished program at Berkeley offers a range of options. Students can learn whether brie pairs well with Pouilly Fuisse wine or how to build a garden path.
But the program, which is supposed to sustain itself with fees, was geared heavily toward technology classes during the dot-com days. That strategy proved disastrous when tech companies started shutting down, leaving Extension with fewer students needing updates on the latest software and systems.
With at least a year generally needed to start new Extension courses, administrators had trouble adapting to the rapidly changing economy. The program kept spending money on courses that became harder sells with each corporate failure, said Judah Rosenwald, Extension's finance chief.
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