WEBSTER UNIVERSITY Analysis

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HISTORY OF WEBSTER UNIVERSITY

The history of Webster University goes back to 1915 when it was founded by the Sisters of

Loretto on November 1, 1915 in Webster Groves, Missouri. The school was originally

named Loretto College after the Catholic religious organization which was founded in

1812. It was one of the first Catholic women colleges west of the Mississippi River. The

organization wanted to give opportunity to the more unfortunate women to attend a school

during a time when higher education wasn’t readily available to them.

The first graduating class of 1919 had two graduates. Five years later in 1924, the school

changed its name to Webster College when the North Central Association of Colleges and

Secondary Schools accredited the school. They changed the name so it wouldn’t be

mistaken for the Loretto Academy in the Loretto Community on Lafayette Avenue in St.

Louis. The college didn’t see much growth until the 1940’s and 50’s. One major change for

the college that made an impact on what the school is today was the enrollment of males in

1962. As the student enrollment continued to climb they eventually opened their doors to

accept males in the all girl college with only a limited list of courses availability for the

males. There were only two males who enrolled that year. It took six years to incorporate a

full coeducational institute with no course restrictions for the male population.

Webster University was involved in a controversy dealing with racial integration battles

taking place in St. Louis during the early 1940’s. The segregationist policies were

challenged in the Catholic colleges and parochial schools by the priests. In 1943, the

bishop assigned the first black female student, Mary Aloyse Foster, to enroll into Webster

College. Webster was St. Louis’ first Catholic college to integrate. However, the

enrollment was blocked by Archbishop John Glennon after conversations between the

Archbishop and the Superior General of the Sisters of Loretto. The controversial

Archbishop started getting negative publicity through articles in national newspapers. It

took three years for Webster College to give in and enabled their first Catholic African

American women, Irene Thomas, to enroll. This was a stepping stone for Webster. 47 years

later down the path the University was recognized in 1992 by the Black Issues in Higher

Education for graduating more African Americans with master’s degrees than any other

school in the United States. They endure the title of being the top not-for-profit institution

in having master’s degrees awarded to African American students. This set precedence for

the type of diverse school Webster University is today with the variety of ethnic

backgrounds and international campus locations.

In 1967, Webster College entered into new ownership by having the Sisters of Loretto

transferring it to a lay board of directors. The Sisters of Loretto saw this as being the best

interest for the school as they had financial difficulties funding it through internal

resources. As of today, the school is still operated by the lay board of directors. Webster is

operated as a private, nonprofit, non-denominational university. Today in 2013, Webster

University has five types of colleges – the School of Business and Technology; the Leigh

Gerdine College of Fine Arts; the School of Education; the School of Communications;

and the College of Arts and Sciences.

Webster University has a list of awards, recognitions, and articles to back up their

standings as being an excellent school for graduate and undergraduate degrees

domestically and internationally. The Black Issues in Higher Education recognized them as

being the top not-for-profit institution in having master’s degrees awarded to African

American students. They were also mentioned in publications by Money Magazine and

U.S. News & World Report. In 1995, Money Magazine recognized them as being one of

the nation’s top 20 commuter schools. The U.S. News & World Report listed them as one

of the top 31 in the country and as “Best Value” among Midwest Regional Schools. This

magazine also recognized their Study Abroad Program as a “Program to Look For” and

ranked it in the top 2 percent nationally. The University was also placed in their first tier of

Midwest Schools for Best Universities for a masters degree in their annual rankings by

America’s Best Colleges. In 2002, Webster University was recognized for their

contributions to military education. Lastly, they have an impressive reputation of being

ranked as having one of the highest graduate business enrollments in the United States by

AACSB (The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) International.

Webster College received a grant in 1963 allowing them to offer a Masters program to

full-time professionals. It was Webster’s first consideration to offer evening classes to

accommodate the full-time professionals who worked during the day. The evening hour

program was overwhelmingly popular in St. Louis. So Webster College decided to extend

the offer of the different options to students throughout the state. In 1966, Webster

expanded by opening a location in Kansas City, MO. This popular program was an interest

to the U.S. Government who invited Webster to be the first college to open a location at

Fort Sheridan near Chicago, IL. This created an open door for Webster’s future. The school

was renamed to Webster University in 1983 to reflect its innovative and diverse institute.

The college grew at magnificent rates and now offers higher education to the military

service personnel at many military bases, along with having international locations. Today,

they have close to 100 locations throughout the United States and abroad, including 32

metropolitan campuses, 21 corporate sites and 42 military installations. In the 1970’s

international campuses opened which consist of being located in Geneva, Switzerland;

Vienna, Austria; and in The Netherlands and England. There are also several located in

Asia, as in Thailand, Shanghai, and China. Webster is also in the process of opening its

first campus in Africa. With having campuses worldwide this gives students a once in a

lifetime opportunity to study abroad.

Even though Webster University is known more for their academics, their athletic

department has improved. They are now part of the NCAA Division III system and have

won the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Sports Award in 2000 for the

first time in the University’s history and continued the streak for the next six out of seven

years.

Webster University’s mission is “worldwide institution, ensures high quality learning

experiences that transform students for global citizenship and individual excellence.”

PROBLEM

The problem that Webster University is encountering is not being exposed enough locally

in the St. Louis metropolitan area, throughout the United States, and globally. It is an

excellent liberal arts school to get a higher education in the fields of fine arts, business and

management, and communications. Webster University’s Centennial celebration in 2015

will give them more visibility not only in their own community, but throughout the world.

They have been recognized through organizations and small publications, but need to

expand their audience. If you would approach Webster’s stakeholders who live within the

60 mile radius of St. Louis and ask what the prominent colleges or universities are in the

area, they will probably mention Washington University, St. Louis University, University

of Missouri, or University of Missouri-St. Louis. This is a hurdle that Webster University

needs to resolve. In this plan, there will be strategies and tactics to give awareness to the

audience. There will be audiences unaware that Webster University has a program for

students to study abroad. They need to become visible to stakeholders showing them the

diversity of their school in all areas of study and bring awareness to the array of cultures

they can become acclimated to globally. This is such an asset of the University. Webster

University is overshadowed by other well-known schools and need to get the

communication out and bring more awareness to the public.

Webster University’s Centennial is an important event because it shows how well the

school has done as an organization. The history shows how they have adapted to the

changes of time from starting as an all-girl Catholic school to opening their enrollment to

males and minorities. They also took a leap by opening campus worldwide and near

military bases. This shows strength and diversity.

STAKEHOLDERS

A stakeholder in a communication plan is someone who has an interest in the messages

being announced. They are an individual or group who is influential in the community.

They are the audience you need to communicate with to achieve your objective. It will

better to educate them on the issue so they are affected by the plan and can influence

others.

There are many audiences who have a stake in this communication plan recognizing

Webster University’s Centennial celebration. There are the high school students seeking

options for college, college students who may consider transferring, parents of these

students, alumni, and residents and business owners near all the campuses worldwide. It is

important to make it visible to them how long the school has been around by giving

interesting facts on the University, bring attention to the academic recognitions and

awards, and doing fun activities.

It is very important to capture the attention of the high school and potential transfer