Table of Contents
General
Information
Admissions
Academic
Policies
Registration
Grades
Tuition &
Fees
Financial
Aid
Student Services
Schedule of Classes
Master's Programs
Course Descriptions
Programs
& Locations
Staff
Mission Statement
Core Franciscan Values
General Objectives
Non-Discrimination Policy
Harassment in the Workplace
2007-2008 Graduate Catalog Supplement
Returning to college can be the start of a new and exciting period in life. Expanding knowledge, learning innovative ways of doing things and meeting friendly faculty and students who may become strong networking contacts are among the benefits of continuing education. This dynamic experience awaits you at Alvernia College.
Alvernia College strives to make the challenges of continuing education manageable. Today’s hectic schedules complicate pursuit of educational goals. The College realizes that many demands are made on a student’s time. Therefore, Alvernia makes classes flexible enough to accommodate a complicated schedule. Alvernia College’s main campus in Reading and its satellite locations in Philadelphia, Pottsville, and Easton are conveniently located in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Alvernia’s main campus is located on 80 acres in Reading, Pennsylvania. The main campus offers students the opportunity to choose between four graduate programs, four graduate certificate programs, and 14 undergraduate majors.
Campus Contact Information:
400 Saint Bernardine Street
Reading, PA 19607
1-888-ALVERNIA
610-796-8228
610-796-8367 (fax)
www.alvernia.edu
Graduate Office Hours:
Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Graduate Programs Offered on Alvernia's Main Campus:
Alvernia’s Schuylkill Center is conveniently located in Pottsville, Pennsylvania.
Center Contact Information:
2650 Woodglen Road
Pottsville, PA 17901
570-628-4011
570-628-3317 (fax)
Center Office Hours:
Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Friday, by appointment
Saturday, by appointment
Graduate Programs Offered at the Schuylkill Center:
For information about Master of Education programs in Schuylkill County contact Kay Haffey at 610-796-8312.
Alvernia’s Philadelphia Center is conveniently located in center city
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Philadelphia
Center offers students the opportunity to choose between one graduate with two
concentrations and three undergraduate
programs.
Center Contact Information:
1355 West Cheltenham Avenue
Melrose Park, PA 19027
215-635-4734
215-6354590 (fax)
Center Office Hours:
Monday through Thursday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Graduate Programs Offered at the Philadelphia Center:
Off-site Location Programs
Alvernia College designs programs to meet the needs of businesses, schools,
and non-profit organizations. Programs have been developed for collegiate
credit and for Act 48 credit at various off-site locations. Off-site locations
have included Schuylkill Community Education Council, Caron Foundation, Godiva
Chocolatier, Reading Hospital and Medical Center, Lowe’s Distribution
Center, Service Access Management, and various school districts in Berks,
Lancaster,
Lehigh,
and
Montgomery counties. For more information on how Alvernia College can design
individualized programs for business, please contact Karen Schroder,
Director of Business Outreach Programs at 610-796-8410. For information on
designing
programs
for schools, please contact Kay Haffey, Director of Education Outreach Programs
at 610-796-8312.
Alvernia College
Graduate and Continuing Studies Division
400 St. Bernardine Street
Reading, PA 19607
610-796-8228
610-796-8367 (fax)
www.alvernia.edu
Mission
Statement
To learn. To love. To serve.
Alvernia is a Catholic co-educational college sponsored by the Bernardine Sisters of St. Francis. Its purpose is to provide affordable quality education that combines liberal arts with career and professional opportunities. The goal is to prepare learners for personal achievement, for social responsibility, for moral integrity, and for spiritual fullness.
True to the Judeo-Christian tradition, to the Catholic faith, and to the Franciscan heritage, Alvernia College seeks to foster a community of faith, reverence for the dignity of all life, commitment to peace and justice, and devotion to service — particularly to the materially and spiritually disadvantaged.
Fundamental to Alvernia’s commitment to education are the values of collegiality, humility, and service. All members of the Alvernia community are in a collegial partnership, with the talents of each considered to be essential to the success of the total learning environment. All members of the Alvernia community are expected to be authentic witnesses to the Gospel by the example of their lives in their teaching and service.
In accordance with the principles of the Roman Catholic Church, the Alvernia experience seeks to assist learners in the development of their academic knowledge and professional competence, in discovering personal meaning through service to others, in forging a system of values worthy of free men and women, and in developing a mature spirituality and prayerful life-style. Thus the Alvernia College learning environment strives to join charity with knowledge so its students may enrich their relationship to God and to their fellow human beings.
The mission statements of the Bernardine Congregation and Alvernia College are the sources of the five core values of the Franciscan tradition — service, humility, peacemaking, contemplation, and collegiality. To call these values “traditional” to the Catholic, Franciscan view of the world does not imply that they are merely “old” or without relevance to contemporary society. On the contrary, these basic values have continued, throughout the centuries, to inform a way of life, a view of the world, and a definition of men’s and women’s relationship to their Creator that is perhaps more relevant in today’s world than ever before.
These values are, then, very much alive at Alvernia. Together they form the foundation for decision-making, for program development, and for our relationships with each other in the pursuit of our personal, communal, and educational goals. They are what make an education at Alvernia College unique. As members of the Alvernia College community, each of us, no matter our role, willingly proclaims common ownership of these core values.
Alvernia College is founded on the Judeo-Christian commitment to the harmonious development of the whole person. The student’s development into a responsible person is the basic reason for the existence of the College. The Alvernia College environment, therefore, is designed to provide students with the opportunity:
Alvernia College complies with all applicable federal, state, and local nondiscrimination laws in the administration of its educational programs and services and in its employment relationships.
We are committed to equality. Continued and responsible growth of our College
results from enhancing and utilizing the abilities of all individuals to the
fullest extent practicable within the framework of our environment. All employment
decisions advance the principal of equal employment opportunity. In addition,
personnel activities such as recruitment, interviewing, selection, promotion,
training, benefits, transfers, layoffs, demotion and discipline are administered
according to good business practices,
the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, Executive Orders concerning equal
employment opportunity, and Equal Opportunity Commission regulations and guidelines,
all of which require that all persons have equal employment opportunities and
strictly prohibit discriminatory and harassment practices.
The Human Resources Office is charged with the responsibility to maintain the necessary programs, records, and reports to comply with all government regulations, and with the goals and objectives of the equal employment opportunity program.
Any employee or applicant of this college who feels that he or she has been
discriminated against in employment or recruiting should contact the Human
Resources Office to pursue the proper discrimination complaint procedure.
Harassment in the Workplace
Alvernia College strives to maintain an environment where all employees and students are free from harassment. The College will not tolerate harassment of any type. No employee or student will be discriminated or retaliated against for bringing alleged issues of harassment to the attention of the College, and employees and students are encouraged to do so. The President has appointed an EEO/Sexual Harassment Committee to assist employees and students in determining if they have grounds for an EEO or sexual harassment complaint. This committee has been trained in issues involving EEO and sexual harassment. The members of this committee are posted on the bulletin board outside the Human Resources Office.
The participation of women and minorities in management by employment and
promotion will continue to be emphasized so that they may be given the
opportunity to
contribute to the success of the College. All employees of Alvernia College
will continue to approach this responsibility with the sensitivity and human
concern they have demonstrated in the past.
The content of this
catalog is provided for the information of the student. It is accurate at the
time of printing, but is subject to change from time to time as deemed appropriate
by the College in order to fulfill its role and mission or to accommodate circumstances
beyond its control. Any such changes may be implemented without prior notice
and without obligation and, unless specified otherwise, are effective when made.
Catalog feedback, additions and corrections should be directed to the:
Dean of Graduate and Continuing Studies
610-796-8228
Updated: December 1, 2007