Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne will close its Warsaw center at the end of the month, the school announced.
IPFW opened the center in 2003. Initially, the center offered classes with instructors who taught there and closed-circuit television feeds to classes at IPFW's campus.
In the announcement, IPFW said it also began offering classes via interactive video conferencing. And now students have the option of streaming classes online or viewing them on demand, which the university said reduces the need to have a center in Warsaw.
In the announcement, IPFW said enrollment of Warsaw-area students in online courses has grown.
“IPFW currently teaches 200 unique online courses," Deb Conklin, executive director of the university's Division of Continuing Studies, said in the announcement. "Last year there were 49,323 credit hours taught campus-wide through online instruction. Annually, this represents 16 percent of IPFW’s total credit hours taught in fall and spring, and 41 percent of summer credit hours.
"Students report online learning helps them stay enrolled, keep their scholarships and graduate sooner," she continued. "It removes barriers and helps students manage work and family obligations, even when they travel for internship and study abroad programs. As a result, a physical center is no longer serving the study patterns of our students. IPFW intends to focus resources on growing online and alternate delivery options for accelerated and special class schedules.”
IPFW said students enrolled in summer and fall classes at the Warsaw center will be contacted to discuss alternative ways of taking those closes. Classes with minimum enrollments that are taught at the center could be moved to other locations in Warsaw.
In the announcement, Chancellor Vicky Carwein said IPFW would continue to work with community leaders in Warsaw to address their education needs.