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| Sunset for SHU Luxembourg |
Sacred Heart University Shuts Down Its Luxembourg Campus
On March 14, 1990, while I was Consul General
of Luxembourg in New York, I received two visitors: Dr Pete Fairbough and Dr
Richard Farmer from Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT. They enquired about
the possibility to establish an MBA Program in Luxembourg.
The Luxembourg Government’s official policy at
the time was that Luxembourg didn't want a university on its territory. Forcing
Luxembourg students to go study abroad was seen as a good thing promoting world
openness and diverse sources of learning at the neighbors.
Knowing the hurdles, and to circumvent various
oppositions, we went the extra mile to make it happen. Pete Fairbaugh wrote his
dissertation in 1995 for his Degree of Doctor of Education on the development
of the MBA program in Luxembourg. As expected, the project encountered some hostility,
among others and surprisingly from the Ministry of Education headed by a
Christian Social Minister, Marc Fischbach.
In the meantime, as a Trustee emeritus of
Sacred Heart University, I’m surprised by the secrecy and suddenness of the
decision, but even more by the decision at all. Secrecy and surprise are
generally used if conflict can be expected. I take it that there was no
unanimity at the Board. The decision by itself is on weak footing: the program
was a success confirmed over 30 years. It had its European roots and flavors in
one of the European capitals, and it allowed hundreds of students to graduate from
a program that put students and faculty face to face. Attending online courses
via SHU Fairfield CT doesn’t sound more exciting than attending an Ohio
University or University of Phoenix MBA. Competing on price? The Luxembourg angle
put Sacred Heart University in a unique position.
So why step back from a proven and unique model
now? Access to the Luxembourg government, difficult in the early days, had
become a privilege, now that so many of its members are Dr hc of Sacred Heart
University. The question then remains, who took this decision and why? It doesn’t
seem to measure up to a level of an MBA graduate.
And a final word: why didn’t SHU give a one-year
notice of the shutdown, acknowledging some financial responsibility? It is
certainly not fair to push the consequences on the students. SHU could have not
accepted new first year students and allow for an orderly shut down next year
when the last students graduate.
Egide Thein, Trustee emeritus of Sacred Heart University.
