Page 26 - BusinessWest May 27, 2024

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A Bold Step Forward
Bay Path Goes All In with Acquisition of Cambridge College
BY GEORGE O’BRIEN
[email protected]
As she talked about how Bay Path Uni- versity’s acquisition of Cambridge College came about — and, more importantly, why — Sandy Doran, Bay Path’s president, turned the clock back almost a year to when the university undertook
a ‘strengths and opportunities’ analysis to under- stand where its growth opportunities might lie.
This led to creation of a cross-disciplinary lead- ership task force to conduct an analysis of strate- gic growth opportunities, building on the things the school does well while also focusing on ways to amplify those traits.
This task force eventually identified five oppor- tunities for growth — everything from graduate programs to business-to-business corporate spon- sorships; from expansion of its online American Women’s College to growth in enrollment among Latino populations.
As it considered these opportunities and how to seize them, Doran said Bay Path, its leadership, and its board could “do some things around the edges” with all or several of them, as she put it, or “do something bold and think about our future in a transformational way.”
Given Bay Path’s recent history — one that has seen it achieve dramatic growth and rise from a two-year college to a four-year university with a growing slate of degree options and national rec- ognition in fields like cybersecurity — the latter course was essentially a given, said Doran, now in her fifth year as president of the college, adding quickly that the question became what this bold move would be.
As different opportunities were considered, the answer became an acquisition of Cambridge Col- lege, a Boston-based, private, nonprofit institution established in 1971, a move that should enable Bay Path to double its overall enrollment; gain a presence in other markets, including Boston and Puerto Rico, which Cambridge as a campus; and, overall, achieve growth in all those areas identified by the task force.
This includes enrollment among Hispanic populations, she said, noting that this is one of the fastest-growing constituencies in this region.
“Outside of Puerto Rico and New York City, Western Massachusetts has the largest Hispanic population in the United States,” Doran told Busi-
26 MAY 27, 2024
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Bay Path University President Sandy Doran