High school juniors in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, will be able to enroll in a college-level course this summer that teaches project management practices and such 21st Century skills as global literacy, problem solving, innovation and creativity. The pilot is being underwritten by the School District of Philadelphia, DeVry University, Inc., the PMI Delaware Valley Chapter and the Project Management Institute (PMI) Educational Foundation.
The “Philadelphia PM Project,” as the course is named with PM meaning project management, combines the ‘Learning Passport to College’ program with project management and 21st Century Skills. “This course will give students a solid introduction to project management – a discipline that is growing in demand by businesses and organizations worldwide,” said
Cassandra W. Jones, Ed. D. (pictured at right), interim chief academic officer for the School District of Philadelphia. “In addition to the pilot course this summer, we will have pilots at Philadelphia high schools in the fall of 2008 and the spring of 2009. To be considered for one of the three classes, a student must be an incoming senior, have a B plus grade average and have a 93 percent or above attendance record during the 2007-2008 school year. Once completed, each student will receive college credit for the course.”
The “Philadelphia PM Project” conforms to Pennsylvania state and national guidelines and addresses Perkins Title IV requirements. “We think the program could be introduced in other cities and eventually become a national program, but first we have to evaluate the three pilot courses,” said Dr.
John Byrne, PMP, associate professor of business programs at DeVry University’s Keller Graduate School and a Professional Project manager (PMP®) – pictured at left.
“Worldwide, we have seen a tremendous growth in the need for project managers,” said
Gregory Balestrero, president and chief executive officer for PMI and chief operating officer for the PMI Educational Foundation. “There is a global project manager shortage so the profession of project management is an excellent one for students to consider. Project management is also an important life skill. The PMI Educational Foundation is very pleased to be a partner in introducing the ‘The Philadelphia PM Project.”
James Snyder, PMI Founder, PMI Fellow, a past volunteer executive director, president and chairman of the PMI Board, founding member of the PMI Delaware Valley Chapter, and leader of the student mentoring program from the chapter for this pilot, added “this program offers an outstanding opportunity to better equip these students for success in their academic, personal and future professional lives.” He further stated “I am pleased to be have been able to help organize and be part of this important initiative.”
Michael Brennan, president of the PMI Delaware Valley Chapter and a PMP added “We look forward to sharing our project management knowledge with students in this pilot program to enable them to be more successful in their academic, personal and future professional lives.”
The PMI Delaware Valley Chapter will be providing classroom mentors, and DeVry University will be providing classroom instructors and course curriculum. The PMI Educational Foundation is contributing project management textbooks and marketing for the course.
The School District of Philadelphia is the eighth largest school district in the nation, by enrollment. Located in a historic and culturally rich setting, the district is a racially and ethnically diverse community committed to education. Students, parents, teachers, staff, and community members make up the School District of Philadelphia. For additional information on the district, please visit
www.phila.k12.pa.us.
As one of the largest degree-granting higher education systems in North America, DeVry University provides high-quality, career-oriented associate, bachelor's and master's degree programs in technology, healthcare technology, business and management. More than 57,000 students are enrolled at its 89 locations in 26 states and Canada, as well as through DeVry University Online. DeVry University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (NCA),
www.ncahlc.org. DeVry University, a division of DeVry Inc. (NYSE: DV), is based in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. For more information about DeVry University, visit
www.devry.edu.
For the past 37 years, the PMI-DVC has enhanced Project management professionalism in the Delaware Valley area through chapter activities, meetings and other educational programs designed to strengthen the knowledge, awareness and understanding of project management principles, tools and techniques. Today, the PMI-DVC chapter serves over 2,400 members in eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, Delaware and Northeast Maryland. For more information, please visit
www.pmi-dvc.org.
PMI Educational Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Project Management Institute (PMI), is a not-for-profit, non-political organization that champions project management knowledge and skills for educational and social good. Founded in 1990 by PMI, PMI Educational Foundation provides scholarships, confers awards, sponsors research, prepares and disseminates project management-related educational material and awards financial grants to support project management life skills and humanitarian programs. Please visit
PMIEF.org for more information.
With more than 265,000 members in 170 plus countries, the Project Management Institute, Inc. (PMI) is the leading membership association for the project management profession and the largest association dedicated to project management in the world. As the leading advocate for the profession, PMI is actively engaged in setting professional standards, providing a professional career path for project managers and maintaining a family of professional credentials: Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM®), Project Management Professional (PMP®), Program Management Professional (PgMP)® and PMI Scheduling Professional (PMI-SP)SM. The PMP, held by more than 267,000 project managers worldwide, is the only project management credential that is globally transferable. PMI provides members with access to the knowledge, skills, educational support and networking opportunities needed to drive business results through project management, program management and portfolio management. The Institute is highly regarded for its extensive research capabilities and its program to accredit colleges and universities and Registered Education Providers to teach
PMI approved project management courses. PMI was founded in 1969. Please visit
PMI.org for more information or contact
joseph.patterson@pmi.org.