TOLEDO, Ohio — The University of Toledo announced realignment plans Monday with the merging of four colleges into two.
UToledo said they plan to merge the College of Nursing and College of Health and Human Services into one college focused on health professions.
The university also plans to merge the College of Arts and Letters with the Judith Herb College of Education.
UToledo said the goal is for the four colleges to become two by the start of the 2025-26 academic year. According to the university, committees of faculty and staff from the colleges are being formed as they work through the logistics of the proposed mergers.
“We are all aware that higher education institutions across the country need to find creative ways to meet the challenges of today and position themselves for future growth. These mergers are an opportunity for UToledo to combine resources to better support our strategic goals for strengthening student success initiatives and delivering relevant and innovative academic programs,” Dr. Scott Molitor, interim provost and executive vice president for academic affairs said in a press release from the university. “I look forward to working closely with our faculty and staff during the upcoming year to create these new colleges in ways that enhance the educational opportunities available to our students.”
Of the four colleges, the College of Health and Human Services has the most students with 1,630 enrolled in the fall 2023 semester. It will merge with 1,025 students from the College of Nursing "to bring together their healthcare missions into one new health professions college."
In the updated campus master plan for the university, the College of Health and Human Services will move from the main campus to the Health Science Campus where the College of Nursing is located.
“I am excited for the opportunities for our students interested in healthcare careers. We will be able to better align our pre-professional pathways and interprofessional education and clinical experiences to give them more flexibility to pursue any number of careers in the healthcare industry,” Dr. Mark Merrick, current dean of the College of Health and Human Services said.
The university said Merrick will lead the merged college. Dr. Eileen Walsh will continue to serve as the chief nursing administrator during the period of transition.
The College of Arts and Letters has 1,350 students and will merge with the 736 students currently enrolled in the College of Education. The university said the two colleges have a long history of collaboration and that it will be enhanced through the merger.
“We are committed to building the university of the 21st century by providing innovative academic programs across the liberal arts and education that provide students with options to pursue their interests and prepare them for success and flexibility in their careers after graduation,” Dr. Melissa Gregory, current dean of the College of Arts and Letters who will lead the merged college said. “This is a great opportunity for dynamic collaboration of our outstanding faculty in both colleges to enhance our exceptional curriculum, field experiences, co-curricular opportunities and advising support.”