Dive Summary:
- Timothy Cook, the 27-year-old founding director of the radical new Saxifrage School in Pittsburgh, envisions a nonprofit college where students earn a four-year degree in a dual-major program, developing a particular kind of career skill but also studying the liberal arts and learning Spanish.
- Cook and his team of 30 volunteers plan to achieve their goal by charging an annual tuition of $6,500 and operating out of public spaces like bars and churches, but before this can happen, they must raise money, design a curriculum, get accredited, and attract students.
- The college will have a maximum of 500 students and hopes to offer a four-year degree as early as 2014, but will be offering a non-credit 12-week course on web development beginning this fall.
From the article:
The vision of a radical new college is taking shape in Pittsburgh, where a 27-year-old is trying to right the wrongs he sees in America's higher education system. Timothy Cook is the founding director of the Saxifrage School, and right now his institution operates out of a donated office space. But his plans are ambitious and unconventional. The nonprofit college he envisages will offer students a four-year degree in a dual-major program where students develop a particular kind of career skill but also study the liberal arts. They will have to learn Spanish as a component of the major. ...