NORTH ADAMS, Mass.—Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) and Berkshire Innovation Center (BIC) are partnering on the Masters in Business Administration (MBA) program to enhance and expand experiences and career connections to prepare graduates for innovation-driven careers in the Berkshires and beyond. 

 

"It's incredible to see two major Berkshire County institutions come together to leverage the growth of MCLA's programming with the BIC advancement opportunities," said James Birge, MCLA President, and BIC Board Member. "I'm looking forward to the networking and educational opportunities this will provide for our MBA students and the collaborations with industry leaders at the BIC."  

 

Through this partnership, MCLA will contribute to the BIC's efforts to foster growth within the life sciences, advanced manufacturing, and all regional technology and innovation-based sectors by being a collaborative-synergistic shaper of the student experience. 

 

Starting this fall, BIC will host students for 10 Saturdays through the spring for MBA students. The classes will be taught online and on-site at BIC in a hybrid format. Applications for the Fall 2023 program are due by August 18.  

 

"To explain an MBA influenced by innovation… you could substitute the word innovation for creativity. What we're able to do by having the classes at the BIC is that we're allowing students to be adjacent to the creative process," said Dr. Dennis Rebelo, Chief Learning Officer at the BIC. "To be able to spark additional thinking that conjures up new ideas that can also be socially responsible is a big win. You may think about technology as anti-human but we think about it as really serving humanity.. we think about things more from a humanitarian standpoint." 

 

"The possibilities are really limitless for our students to embrace and be a part of the future of advanced technologies," said Dr. Joshua Mendel, Associate Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education. at MCLA. 

 

This partnership allows MCLA to fulfill the critical needs of the manufacturing industry in Berkshire County on both the undergraduate and graduate level to grow and enhance the future of the county's workforce. 

 

An MBA information session is scheduled for July 18 at 5 p.m. at BIC in the Milltown Board Room on the second floor. To register visit mcla.edu/mba.