The University of North Texas begins filling the classrooms of its newest campus, the New College at Frisco, in January 2016. In a letter released by university president Neal Smatresk on December 1, the school’s latest extension will not follow the same mold as the UNT main campus in Denton, but rather a more career-focused approach to education.
All curriculum taught at the New College at Frisco will have three key components, according to the school’s website:
a technology component
a communication component
an industry engagement component
The campus is situated along one of the many growing industrial and business pipelines in North Texas, Frisco’s $5 Billion Mile, providing opportunities for industry engagement in the classroom, along with growth in opportunities for students to engage with the community outside the classroom through internships and jobs post-graduation.
The New College at Frisco will open its doors for the Spring 2016 semester with two main focuses: academic classes for currently enrolled UNT students, focusing on areas such as journalism, finance, decision sciences and criminal justice; and professional development seminars to cater to industry professionals seeking to gain knowledge in new areas, like social media strategy or assessing walkway safety.
By fall 2016, UNT hopes to expand the campus’ offerings to include a wider range of academic classes, and begin catering to the growing demand of workforce training for K-12 students with classes for middle and high school students in Collin County. This comes on the heels of the recent implementation of Texas House Bill 5, which went into effect in fall of 2014 and integrated Career and Technical Education into the new graduation requirements for high school students.
To learn more about the New College at Frisco, you can visit their website here.