COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

SCHOOL OF COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
photo courtesy of the Peace Corps
About the School Southern New Hampshire University’s School of Community Economic Development is an internationally recognized leader in education, public policy, research and institution-building in the field of community economic development. The school has served more than 1,200 development practitioners from around the world with its educational and professional development programs during the last 25 years. Our programs provide policymakers and practitioners representing community-based organizations with skills in planning, management and finance and with development tools that enable them to build their communities. With its highly acclaimed degree and certificate programs offered on campus in the U.S. and in partnership with universities in East Africa, the School of CED has demonstrated the importance of the practice of community economic development domestically and internationally.
Our Programs SCED’s International Academic and Professional Development Programs provide “stand alone” professional development training oportunities which can be combined to earn an M.S. in Community Economic Development. The Microenterprise and Development Institute and/or Graduate Certificate in Microfinance Management courses may fulfill the elective course requirements of the School’s International M.S. Program.
Program Features The school serves a diverse community, with courses designed for the microfinance and microenterprise “beginners” as well as advanced practitioners. Features of the program include:
• year-round programs with opportunities to earn “portable” academic credits, a master’s degree, a certificate of specialization in international microenterprise development or a graduate certificate in microfinance management.
• world-renowned faculty affiliated with major development and academic organizations.
• continuous online support as you complete assignments in your home community.
Participants School of CED programs are intended for international development practitioners and policy makers. Our students have typically spent two years in the field, working for international and national nongovernmental community-based and relief organizations. A number of SCED students work for larger NGO’s such as CARE, Catholic Relief Services, MEDA while others work for smaller indigenous people’s organizations. Their areas of expertise include microenterprise and microfinance, women’s empowerment to development finance. SCED students come from numerous countries in Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia.
Partnerships The School believes in supporting our students in every way possible. One way we do this is through strategic partnerships with like-minded organizations. The Peace Corps Master’s International (PCMI) and Fellows/USA programs at the School combine interdisciplinary coursework with Peace Corps service.
It equips participants with skills designed for professional practice in developing countries or with disenfranchised communities in the United States.
These programs are available to SCED students before going to their Peace Corps assignment, or upon their return from service.
Students nominated for Peace Corps service are given special consideration for admission and scholarship. For more information on the Peace Corps visit www.peacecorps.gov/gradschool.
Academic and Professional Development Programs 2008 Stephanie Stuart has researched alternative fuel sources in the Himalayas in Nepal; created a forestry program in Syracuse,
N.Y.; and operates a jewelry design company in St. Paul, Minn. Now a master’s degree program student in the School of CED, her goal is to help communities with economic development.
“Having started my own business, a small business, I definitely understand the struggles of getting loans and the startup that you need to be successful,” Stephanie says.
Stephanie’s path to CED began when she joined the board of a microenterprise organization.
She attended the university’s Microenterprise and Development Institute and was hooked.
“The curriculum, the facilitators, the participants were unparalled.
It was an amazing experience,” she says.
“I think that you don’t have to change the world to have made a contribution,” she says. “I think just to have a positive impact on a family, on a community … helping a family bring in more income into their household so that they can pay the school fees for their children to go to school … if I could do that for one family, it would be amazing.”
School of Community Economic Development “I think that you don’t have to change the world to have made a contribution.”
Stephanie Stuart Students may pursue a Master of Science in International Community Economic Development through our Summer Intensive Program, for international students working abroad, or our weekend program, for U.S.-based students.
Weekend Format This 22-month format allows students who reside in the U.S. to work full time while still attending classes during a three-day weekend once a month. Courses take place at our Manchester, N.H., campus and online.
Summer Intensive Format International practitioners attend classes on campus for up to seven weeks in the summer at our Manchester campus. After the first term they will return to their communities to carry out a community economic development project and complete course work online.
They then will return to campus for a final seven week summer term.
CED Master’s Projects All master’s degree students are required to plan and implement
a CED project in their communities. This learning-by-doing approach ensures that students benefit from a hands-on, applied and practitioner-oriented experience. Each student must complete a final report on the project to graduate. This serves as a graduate thesis.
The Curriculum
The curriculum focuses on providing the following:
Knowledge – Students learn about development theories and economics.
Skills – Students develop project design and management as well
as organizational and financial management skills.
Specialization – Participants may specialize in International Microenterprise
Development and Cooperatives and Credit Unions.
Students must complete 39 academic credits to successfully graduate. These include the required on-campus courses and online course work. Students must complete a minimum of 32
required and seven elective academic credits.
Visit www.snhu.edu/1744.asp online for additional information about course requirements
and content. Please contact Academic Program Chair Catherine Rielly at
c.rielly@snhu.edu for additional information about ICED master’s degree programs.
Term 1 Term 2 Term 3 Term 4 Sept. to Dec. Jan. to April Sept. to Dec. Jan. to April
Term 1 Summer Intensive Session On-Campus
Term 2 Online Session Field-Based
Term 3 Online Session Field-Based
Term 4 Summer Intensive Session
On-Campus When Summer 2008 ( 7 weeks) Sept. to Dec. 2008 (16 weeks) Jan. to April 2009
(16 weeks) Summer 2009 (7 weeks)
Where In residence at the SNHU campus, Manchester, N.H.
In your home community (Internet access required)
In your home community (Internet access required)
In residence at the SNHU campus, Manchester, N. H. Course Requirements Required and
elective courses Required and elective courses Required and elective courses
Required and elective courses
Master of Science Program Microenterprise and Development Institute (MDI-NH) MDI-NH was founded in 1999 to focus on practitioner skill-building in financial systems and business development services. The institute has provided specialized professional development training for more than 900 participants from 90 countries.
Institute courses place a keen emphasis on the “triple double bottom line” of development:
• building programs that support strong local economies • engaging stakeholders in highly participatory processes
• creating sustainable livelihoods which have a positive environmental impact.
The MDI offers approaches for addressing the financial needs of poor families and their communities as well as building effective financial institutions that assure broad-ba sed and long-term social and economic participation in the benefits that these institutions provide.
Participants in the New Hampshire program will learn from some of the top microfinance and development practitioners in the field and network with peers from all over the globe.
2008 MDI-NH Design and Course Offerings The MDI is geared to practitioners in the community development, microfinance and microenterprise development fields who
seek an educational program that is highly relevant and flexible to meet their professional development needs.
In 2008 we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the MDI-NH with exciting course offerings and program format changes.
The MDI-NH will be expanded to embrace a multidisciplinary and practical curriculum:
• Knowledge Tracks including: ProPoor Enterprise Development, Microfinance Financial Management, Institutional Development, Cooperatives and Other Member Owned Institutions, Topics in CED
• Academic Credit and learning assessments will be a standard feature of every course.
• Leaders of the development and MF/MED fields will facilitate courses and plenary discussions.
• Grameen Bank founder and 2006 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Mohammed Yunus has been invited to attend.
A full listing of MDI-NH courses and schedules is available at www.mdi-nh.org.
Graduate Certificate in Microfinance Management The graduate certificate in microfinance management is the first School of CED program to be offered completely online. It provides
a unique opportunity for busy microfinance practitioners who cannot leave their communities but still wish to acquire new skill sets and earn academic credit. A student who completes
this program can earn either a certificate of participation or a graduate certificate. Students may also transfer credits into the international CED master’s program. Each 11-week
online course is taught by experts in the field.
Course Offerings for 2007 – 2008 (Academic year) Practical Microfinance (ICD 525) by Prof. Malcolm Harper Sept. 17 – Dec. 8, 2007
Registration: Aug. 6 – Aug. 31, 2007
Performance Evaluation & Client Assessments in Micro finance (ICD 527) by Dr. Gaamaa Hishigsuren Jan. 7 – March 22, 2008
Registration: Nov. 26 – Dec. 24, 2007
Financial Analysis for Management of MFIs (ICD 526) by Mr. Kadry Furany March 31- June 14, 2008
Registration: Feb. 18 – March 17, 2008 Apply online at www.snhu.edu/914.asp.
Course information and course descriptions are available online at www.snhu.edu/856.asp. Please contact Puneetha Palakurthi at p.palakurthi@snhu.edu for more information about the GCMM program. Learn more about Southern New Hampshire University’s Online programs at www.snhu.edu/online. Professional Development Programs When Aly Diakhate enrolled in the School of Community Economic Development at Southern New Hampshire University, he knew only that he wanted to help people in need.
“I was raised in some difficult conditions by a single mom who struggled,” says Aly, who was born and grew up in Senegal, Africa. “Until I got admitted into this program, I never thought about how much I can do just in the field of economic development. (The School of CED) is
allowing me to focus on some specific skills and essential, crucial skills that I need to get the work done.”
Professionally, Aly is working with Faith Fund and Neighborhood Housing Service of Baltimore on a unique mortgage and small business lending program for members of Baltimore’s Islamic community.
Having been away from home for seven years, he looks forward to returning to Senegal, where he will apply all that he has learned and rejoin his “supportive” – and patient – fiancée.
“Everything that I am doing from school to work is designed around the idea of going home one day. If I can help a woman who, in the midst of an African village where there’s not much hope or
expectation … to provide to her own children and to herself and have activities that will be self-sustained, I would say that I have made a big change in a life,”
Aly says. “Even if it happens with one single person in my lifetime, I think I’ve succeeded.”
“Until I got admitted into this program, I never thought about how much I can do just in the field of economic development.”
Master’s Programs An applicant must:
• be a community economic development practitioner.
• hold a bachelor’s degree or have equivalent field experience.
• be computer literate and have a working knowledge of
Microsoft Office Suite or equivalent software.
• have reliable Internet access.
International applicants must be proficient in English and have a TOEFL score of 550 or an IETLS score of 6.0 or higher.
Required admissions documents include:
• a completed application
• official academic documents, transcripts, mark sheets, etc.
• a professional resume or curriculum vitae
• two letters of recommendation
• a personal statement
International applicants must provide an affidavit of support (documentation of adequate financial support to cover all expenses for the program) and must have a medical form and
chest X-ray when arriving in the United States.
Additional information about international admission is available online at www.snhu.edu/40.asp or by contacting the School of CED admissions office at 603.644.3123 or k.kennedy@snhu.edu.
Graduate Certificate in Microfinance Management
• Current SCED students should contact the School of CED office at 603.644.3103.
• Current SNHU graduate students not enrolled in a SCED program should register online at www.snhu.edu/1143.asp.
• Prospective students who are seeking academic credit (course work only) but are not enrolled in an SNHU graduate program should complete an application online at www.snhu.edu/1740.asp.
• Participants interested in taking the course who are not enrolled in an SNHU graduate program and do not wish to earn academic credit should e-mail r.cote1@snhu.edu. Microenterprise and Development Institute The MDI-NH registration is a two-part process. The preapplication
process must be completed online at www.mdi-nh.org and consists of a questionnaire about your experience, language skills and ability to pay for tuition, room and board and travel.
Qualified applicants will then be sent a link to the full registration application.
A deposit of USD $500 will be required when the full registration application is submitted. Detailed registration information can be found online at www.mdi-nh.org.
You may register for one or two weeks and you will be asked to select first and second choices. Since space is limited in each class, preference will be given to individuals registering for two
weeks of the Institute and will be decided on a first-come, firstserved basis. Applicants will be notified of class availability no later than May 15, 2008.
Aly Diakhate Admissions MDI Tuition Discounts MDI offers significant discounts when registering multiple students from the same organization. Please contact the MDI-NH
staff at mdi@snhu.edu or 01.603.644.3124 for more details.
For additional information about MDI visit www.mdi-nh.org.
Visa Applications
Due to homeland security measures, the process of applying for
a visa for entry into the United States may be quite long and difficult.
It is imperative that you begin the process early.
The U.S. government requires that all international students
acquire an F-1 Student Visa. Visit www.unitedstatesvisas.gov online
for visa information.
Microenterprise and Development Institute participants are
advised to request a Business/Tourist (B-1/B-2) visa for entry to
the United States. See www.snhu.edu/5594.asp online for additional
visa information.
Accommodations
On-campus housing is in a private room in an apartment shared
with up to three additional students. Each apartment is
equipped with a kitchen with full cooking facilities, cooking
utensils, a refrigerator, a living area and a shared bathroom.
Each bedroom has a phone and Internet connection (a cable is
required). Participants who prefer cooking their own meals may
purchase inexpensive food and additional cooking supplies at
local supermarkets. Facilities are cleaned routinely and students
are provided a set of sheets and towels for the duration of the
stay. Washers and dryers are available on campus.
The approximate accommodation cost per student is $300 per
week. A refundable key and excessive cleaning deposit of $50 is
required for those living on campus.
Weekend M.S. Program lodging: The School will send incoming
students hotel information for the Manchester, N.H. area before
classes begin. The CED rate at our preferred vendor (Holiday
Inn - Brown Avenue) is $75 per night per room. This does not
include the 8% rooms and meals tax. Two students usually share
a room to cut costs.
Additional information about SNHU housing is available online
at www.snhu.edu/1125.asp.
Learn more about the School of CED online at www.snhu.edu/ced
or contact:
Anthony Poore or Kathleen Kennedy
2500 N. River Road
Manchester, NH 03104
Phone: 603.644.3103
Fax: 603.644.3130
a.poore@snhu.edu
k.kennedy@snhu.edu
snhu.edu on campus. on location. online.
Nonacademic Credit Charge Academic Credit Charge Tuition Term Charge
ICED Program N/A N/A $3,400*
GCMM
(per course charge) $500 $1,497** N/A
MDI***
1 Week - $1,300
2 Weeks - $2,500
up to 3 academic credits - included
up to 6 academic credits - included N/A
* Flat “per-term” tuition charge (7 to 15 academic credits). Additional per-credit tuition costs are applicable should a student wish to take more than 15 credits per term.
** 3 academic credits per course
*** includes all books, reading materials, lunches Monday through Friday and one dinner per week.
Tuition
SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY •
1982 – 2007 25th Anniversary
• SCHOOL OF COM MUNI T Y ECONOMIC DEVE LOPMENT •