MICHAEL THOMAS
PRESIDENT
CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
WHY: Driving healthcare-focused growth at Irvine-based private university system that counts 60 undergraduate and graduate programs. Nursing program touts 96% average passing rate for national licensure examination, above overall average of 83%.
FUTURE PLANS: Increase in demand for the school’s nursing program prompted the state board to increase its admission count, resulting in this year’s $44 million acquisition for a 114,000-square-foot building in the Irvine Spectrum, expected to open in August. Among largest office deals of the year in OC. New facility will house 250 students. Plans are underway to open an additional nursing building in the Inland Empire this year and add new healthcare programs headed by the School of Health and Human Sciences.
BY THE NUMBERS: Tuition for the nursing program runs around $55,000; registered nurses in California make an average yearly salary between $75,000 and $120,000.
IN THEIR WORDS: “We are committed to workforce development in Orange County, and we’re very excited to be a member of the Irvine community.”
