Presenters: DAVID M. GROSSMAN, Thomas Edison State College; SYLVIA HAMILTON, Thomas Edison State College; HADAS SHEFFER, Graduate!Philadelphia; PATRICK MYERS, United Parcel Service

      This session provides two case studies, one corporate, one community-based on promoting degree completion programs to advance corporate and societal goals. The UPS/TESC partnership, developed over the past two years, creates an alignment between UPS’ tuition assistance plan, its learning and development initiatives, and the strategic objectives and succession planning of UPS through the creation of a customized baccalaureate degree program offered to UPS employees by Thomas Edison State College. Graduate!Philadelphia, supported by philanthropic foundations and the City of Philadelphia seeks to get 90,000+ Philadelphians who have previously attended college to return to earn their degrees. Creating a downtown center for adults interested in higher education, and working with 9 metropolitan area universities and colleges, Graduate!Philadelphia has attracted increasing attention from public officials as critical component of the economic development of the city.