The Jack Welch Management Institute (JWMI) at
Strayer University is a
for-profitonline educational institution based in the United States, owned by
Strategic Education, Inc. It was founded in 2009 by
Jack Welch, former CEO of
General Electric and his wife,
Suzy Welch, author and public speaker.[1] JWMI offers an online executive
Master of Business Administration degree, graduate certificates, and executive certificates for working adults. The company is headquartered outside of
Washington D.C. at Strayer University's corporate office - 2303 Dulles Station Blvd, Herndon, VA 20171.
History
The Jack Welch Management Institute was sponsored by
Chancellor University in 2009, when
Welch invested $2 million to purchase a 12% share of the company running the university, Chancellor University Systems.[2][3] The partnership investment was made possible due to the relationship between
Jack Welch and entrepreneur
Michael Clifford and allowed the school to emerge from bankruptcy.[3] Chancellor named the MBA program The Jack Welch Management Institute.[3]
Welch said that he wanted to create a high-quality MBA program that would integrate his philosophy of leadership and human resources into a 12-course program. Welch infused his personal principles into the curriculum.[3][4]
The institute launched in June 2009, and classes began in January 2010.[5] Initial pricing for the product in 2010 was $40,000 for an undergraduate degree and $26,000 for an MBA.[3]
In April 2011,
Welch approached
Robert Silberman, CEO and Chairman of
Strayer Education, Inc., to discuss moving the institute to
Strayer University.[6]Welch paid nearly $2 million to buy back his namesake from Chancellor, stating that "Chancellor wasn't a good vehicle."[6][7] Strayer Education, Inc purchased the Jack Welch Management Institute from Chancellor University in December 2011 for $7 million.[8] Welch invested $2.8 million to Strayer Education as a representation of his economic interest in the program.[8]
Academic programs
The institute offers an accredited
Master of Business Administration,[9] graduate certificates, and executive certificates[10] covering various business-related topics[11] through
online classes.[12] The online MBA can be completed in 18-months. The graduate certificates can be completed in 9 months and the executive certificates are 6-week programs.[13]
In March 2013, the institute launched a series of online, self-guided, self-paced management training programs under the
Welch Way brand.
Welch developed the MBA curriculum, drawing from his management experience as CEO of GE and his experience teaching managers and executives at GE's Leadership Development Center.[9][12] In addition to helping shape the program's curriculum, he held the title of distinguished professor at the institute.[14] He regularly addressed students via
video stream and held
video conferences with them at the end of each term.[15][16]
Welch expected the relatively low tuition and flexible schedule for the institute's MBA program to make it attractive to those currently employed but wishing to earn an MBA.[12] He stated that he planned to grow the institute into the number one online business school in the world by 2016.[17]