The University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College is a regional campus of the University of Cincinnati and is located in Blue Ash, Ohio. It was founded in 1967 as the first regional campus of the university. With an enrollment of about 5,000 students, UC Blue Ash College is one of the largest regional colleges in Ohio.
History
The University of Cincinnati created UC Blue Ash College, known then as Raymond Walters College, as a result of the federal Higher Education Act that became law in 1965. The legislation helped increase access to higher education for low and middle-income students by strengthening the educational resources for colleges and universities. In Ohio, those resources were invested into existing public universities to create regional colleges that are open access and offer low tuition. Under the supervision of the inaugural dean, Hilmar Kreuger, the college officially opened its doors on September 25, 1967 with an enrollment of 632 students.
Notable milestones
1969: Dr. Ernest Muntz is named dean of the college and serves until 1990. He is the longest-tenured dean of UC Blue Ash.
1977: The Department of Math, Physics and Computer Science is one of the first institutions in Ohio to acquire a super-minicomputer. This technology was unparalleled in local academia at the time.
1997: The UC Blue Ash Study Abroad Program launches with a course in the United Kingdom. Since its founding, the program has visited over 15 countries and offered more than 50 courses.
2004: The college launches the Bachelor's in Radiation Science Technology program, its first bachelor's degree program.
2010: The UC Smiles program is created to provide free oral health check-ups to under-served school children in Greater Cincinnati at the Dental Hygiene Clinic.
2011: The UC Board of Trustees approve changing the name from Raymond Walters College to UC Blue Ash College.
2011: The college adds its second bachelor's degree, the Bachelor of Technical and Applied Science.
2017: Construction on Progress Hall, a 16,000 square foot building with new classrooms and faculty offices, is completed.
Campus
The 135-acre campus, located in Blue Ash, Ohio, consists of six academic buildings. The University of Cincinnati purchased the land in 1965 from the City of Cincinnati.
Ronald D. Brown: A current member of the University of Cincinnati's Board of Trustees, Brown has served as CEO of Milacron Inc. and Vice Chairman and COO of The Armor Group.
Eric Broyles: A UC Blue Ash College alumnus, Broyles graduated with honors from the University of Cincinnati, earned his law degree at the University of Virginia's School of Law and went on to become a corporate attorney, entrepreneur and author. He serves as CEO of ExpertConnect in Washington D.C. and in 2018 donated $1 million to the scholarship fund he previously created at UC Blue Ash College.
Kara Sanders: During her time with the U.S. Department of Labor, Sanders designed and implemented numerous apprenticeship programs. She now works as Craftforce Development Executive at the Messer Construction Company, spearheading local outreach in building trade skills among youth.
