"Through the Caterpillar Academic Technology Initiative, Knox aims to create a new emphasis on the links between the liberal arts and industry in the area of information services education," said Rick Nahm, president of Knox College.
"Knox has invested heavily in expertise and technological infrastructure," Nahm said. "We already have a campus-wide fiber-optic network, Internet access in student residences, and the Educational Technology Center that was started last year by Knox, Carl Sandburg College and School District 205.
"With the Caterpillar Academic Technology Initiative, Knox will add additional computer work stations and software, and create new courses in computer science and new career-related opportunities for students."
Specific elements of the five-year-long initiative will be developed during Knox's upcoming fall term.
Knox's plan is to expand both the computer science curriculum and career opportunities for liberal arts graduates. "Knox is committed to melding the liberal arts experience, which emphasizes diverse points of view, with the technological skills required by business and industry," Nahm said.
Founded in 1837, Knox is an independent, four-year, liberal arts college, located in Galesburg, Illinois, with 1,100 students from 42 states and 33 nations. Knox's "Old Main," a National Historic Landmark, is the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.