Northeastern University announced last week that it will be the new home of the Lowell Institute School (LIS), housed since its founding in 1903 at MIT.
Last December former Provost Mark Wrighton announced MIT's decision to discontinue the funding and provision of space effective in June 1996 for the evening school to "keep down costs" and to "focus on (MIT's) principal educational mission as a research university."
The Lowell Institute School offers non-degree based technical education to Boston-area residents. The school currently serves about 1,000 students each year by providing evening technical courses in subjects such as computer applications, programming and drafting.
"As soon as I read that MIT would no longer support the school, we became interested," said Northeastern Provost Michael A. Baer. "The Lowell Institute School has a long history of providing quality technology education to working people in the Boston area, and that's also something we feel strongly about at Northeastern."
"This is a wonderful union of two schools committed to offering quality, practical education," Northeastern President John A. Curry said. "Both Northeastern University and the Lowell Institute School look forward to making first-rate instruction available to those who will put what they learn to work."
The Lowell Institute School at Northeastern University will begin offering classes in fall 1996 as a division of the School of Engineering Technology. At that point the entire evening program at Northeastern will be joined with the Lowell Institute School under the Lowell name, according to Dr. Charles Finn (MIT '71), director of the Northeastern school. Credits from Lowell School classes may be applied toward certificates or degrees at Northeastern. Many of the courses taught at MIT have already been and will continue to be eligible for transfer credit.
"All current Lowell students will be encouraged to join the Lowell program at Northeastern," Dr. Finn said, adding that instructors will also be encouraged to make the transfer. Several present LIS instructors also teach in Northeastern's program.
The Lowell School was founded and is substantially supported by the Lowell Foundation, which provides funds to support administration of the school and defray tuition costs.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on September 20, 1995.
