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August 12, 2009, 10:00 AM ET
Jack Welch's Health Woes Delay Classes for New Online M.B.A. Program
The start of a new online M.B.A. program named after Jack Welch has been delayed because of the retired General Electric chief's health problems, The Chronicle has learned.
The ex-GE leader made a splash in June with the announcement of his Jack Welch Management Institute at Chancellor University, which plans to offer degrees from the Welch-branded program both online and at its Cleveland campus.
But a spinal infection called discitis has hospitalized the 73-year-old former executive since July 5. Mr. Welch, who had been involved in developing the program’s curriculum, was forced to put that work on hold, said Francisco A. Garcia, a Chancellor trustee.
The Welch program is not yet open for enrollment. A new start date will be announced “in the next couple of weeks,” Mr. Garcia told The Chronicle in an interview on Wednesday.
“That’s a testament to the fact that this isn’t just an empty brand, but that this is a program which really has his personal involvement," Mr. Garcia said. “We want him to be re-engaged before launching the program.”
In an August 3 telephone interview from New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Mr. Welch told Bloomberg that he was steadily recovering, four weeks into “a six-week protocol to clean out the infection.” Mr. Welch has been posting updates on his ordeal to followers on his Twitter account, as has his wife, Suzy Welch.
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