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The University of Delaware has unveiled a proposal to develop a full campus in Sussex County. The proposal does not specify a locale in the county for the new college, but the university owns tracts of land in Lewes and near Georgetown.
A recommendation to establish the new southern campus was presented by the university’s Strategic Planning Committee Monday, April 7, at a general faculty meeting held at the school’s main campus in Newark.
“The university should explore establishing a distinctive, residential, four-year University of Delaware college in Sussex County. By expanding its contributions in southern Delaware, the university would offer Delawareans enhanced access to top-quality higher education programs, research and service.
“This new college, built as a model green campus, should offer programs designed to take advantage of its location and to capitalize on the university’s rich academic resources. A Sussex County campus would also offer opportunities for the university to connect with new constituents, including those who are developing second careers and the culturally active retirement community in southern Delaware,” reads a portion of the planning committee’s report.
The recommendation to create a southern campus is contained in the planning committee’s Initiative for Arts, Culture and Community Partnerships – one of six recommended initiatives.
Others include the following:
• The 21st-Century Research and Graduate Studies Initiative
• The Initiative for Student Engagement and Learning
• The Initiative for the Planet
• The Global Initiative
• The Professional Education Initiative
U of D President Patrick T. Harker and the university’s board of trustees would make final decisions on initiative recommendations.
Harker is reviewing the committee’s report and is scheduled to issue his response on Saturday, May 10, as part of a special daylong forum at the university.
Harker appointed the planning committee in July, asking the panel to examine the school’s current capabilities and define its priorities for the future.
In Sussex County, the university opened its Graduate College of Marine Studies in Lewes in 1970.
In 2006 the school’s Department of Geological Science was added to create the College of Marine and Earth Studies.
The college’s Hugh R. Sharp campus is situated on 132 acres adjacent to the Great Marsh and accessible by Lewes’ Pilottown Road and by New Road.
The campus has laboratories and classrooms facilities but does not feature student housing.
The Strategic Planning Committee’s report is scheduled for public release on Tuesday, April 8, online at www.udel.edu/forum.
Contact Henry Evans at hevans@capegazette.com
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