History of University Without Walls
Founding of UWW: Since its establishment in 1971,
the University Without Walls (UWW) program at UMass Amherst has given adult
students throughout Massachusetts and beyond an opportunity to complete
an undergraduate degree while working, raising families, and participating
in their communities. Just prior to this time, the civil rights and
women's movements had identified barriers preventing many from fully participating
in our society. One such barrier was a higher education system catering
primarily to young students just out of high school. Beyond individual
courses offered through Continuing and Professional Education, adults over the age of twenty-five
who were unable to attend college full time during the day had few opportunities
to earn a bachelor's degree. In response, the UMass Amherst University
Without Walls was one of a number of such adult degree programs established
during the early 1970s at colleges and universities throughout the country,
although only a handful continue today under that name. Since it’s
founding, UWW at UMass Amherst has benefited from stable leadership; two
directors have been at the helm during its first thirty-five years, until
2006.
The Seventies and Eighties: During the 1970s and 1980s, UWW evolved from a local initiative sponsored by progressive UMass graduate students, faculty, and staff to an expansive program with Massachusetts-wide satellite centers in Worcester, Springfield, Boston and the Berkshires, as well as in Massachusetts prisons. By the end of the 1980s, UWW emerged with a clear curriculum, committed teachers, an individualized degree, rigorous standards, a model form of prior learning assessment, and effective advising. A three-course curriculum had been developed to enhance skills in critical thinking, research, and analytical writing; these curriculum goals still serve as a foundation for all UWW degrees, whether the student is designing an individualized major or following one of the program tracks. During this period in its history, UWW and its students became known and respected throughout the UMass Amherst campus among faculty who had worked with UWW students, reviewing their degrees, reading and evaluating their prior learning portfolios, and conducting independent studies with them.
The Nineties: UWW increasingly aligned itself in the 1990s with the UMass Amherst Division of Continuing and Professional Education and with the emerging movement toward online education. The collaboration with the Continuing and Professional Education, itself an advocate for adult learners, was a natural one, because most UWW students took courses through that division. The hybrid online/on-campus version of the standard UWW individualized degree program called Weekends@UWW enrolled its first cohort in fall 1996, a pioneer in the development of online and hybrid education.
2000 and Beyond: Since 2000, new concentrations were created targeting the areas of human services, teacher licensure, and early care and education, and all involved collaboration with outside organizations, such as the Department of Mental Retardation, or other university departments. A concentration in business leadership was established for employees at MassMutual's Springfield corporate headquarters in 2002. In 2007, these concentrations were streamlined into a Professional Studies program to assure more options and flexibility to non-traditional students by providing more courses online and in a blended format (live and online).
UMass Magazine Article on UWW: This article in UMass Magazine (November 2004) by Deborah Klenotic offers a more detailed account of the University Without Walls, including its history.
