Cleary University has received a $35,000 grant from Motorola Solutions Foundation that will go toward tuition costs for first responders enrolled in Cleary’s Cybersecurity Management BBA program.
“We are inspired by the impactful work of Cleary University within their community,” said Wesley Barden Touhy, executive director of the Motorola Solutions Foundation. “The Motorola Solutions Foundation is proud to champion Cleary’s efforts as they continue to grow and make a positive difference.”
The cybersecurity management major concentration at Cleary University is tailored for students who want to pursue a career defending organizational information technology systems. Students enrolled in this BBA program are provided a complete and thorough education involving all aspects of cybersecurity management and what goes into protecting information and technological assets of the organizations for which they work.
“The Motorola grant will further supplement the tuition costs for many of our first responders,” said Tom Egan, Cleary’s director of development. “We are pleased to report that this is the second consecutive year we have received a grant from the Motorola Solutions Foundation to support our public safety students.”
This year, 730 organizations across the world applied for a grant from the Motorola Solutions Foundation, and fewer than 100 – including Cleary – were chosen to receive funding for public safety education.
Cleary University initially partnered with the Detroit Police Department (DPD) to develop a Degree Completion Pathways program more than four years ago to provide DPD officers and staff — as well as all first responders — with an opportunity to complete their degree quickly, easily, conveniently, flexibly and affordably. Since its inception, the accelerated program has expanded to include public safety officers and first responders throughout the entire state of Michigan and beyond. To date, more than 700 people have completed the program.
“Cleary is a place where education and success merge,” reports Erica Roland, a Detroit police sergeant who completed the Cleary accelerated degree program and has since been promoted. “Cleary gave me courage, confidence, critical thinking skills and the tools to be an effective leader at my job.”
The pathway program, launched in the fall of 2021, was designed specifically to credit officers and staff for previous course work toward a degree; for life and work experience; and for other completed certifications and training. This prior learning assessment process helps veteran first responders complete a bachelor’s degree in only 12 months at Cleary.
“It has been a dedicated vision of Cleary University to create programs that specifically meet the needs of workplaces and civic organizations, and we are so proud that our program has proven to be overwhelmingly successful, as acknowledged by organizations like the Motorola Solutions Foundation,” said Alan Drimmer, president of Cleary University.
