Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Tom Becker
PRS President and CEO
Pacific Retirement Services, Inc.
(541) 857-7211
PRS Partners with SOU to Create
New College Degree Program
(Medford, Oregon) April 28, 2008 – Pacific Retirement Services, Inc. (PRS), a national not-for-profit Senior Living organization headquartered in Medford, Oregon, announced today that it has partnered with Southern Oregon University (SOU) in Ashland, Oregon, to initiate a new undergraduate degree option—Management of Aging Services.
This accredited four-year degree is expected to become available through the SOU School of Business in fall 2008. The curriculum will prepare students for a professional position in the Aging Services industry by providing comprehensive education and practical experience in the development, construction, operation, marketing, financial management, and leadership of Aging Services organizations.
“The Aging Services industry is growing at a very fast pace,” says PRS President and CEO Tom Becker, “and it will continue to grow when baby boomers enter retirement. This partnership with SOU allows PRS to apply its expertise in preparing professionals to meet future demand. PRS already draws from SOU to fill Administrator-in-Training (AIT) and Management Training (MT) positions, and our current expansion will offer even more opportunities for these specialized graduates.”
At the end of last year, PRS opened a second office in Memphis, Tennessee, to expand its business nationwide. Since then it has added Capitol Lakes (formerly Meriter Retirement), a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) in downtown Madison, Wisconsin, to its growing family of affiliates; it has sold out the City Tower and announced the development of the new River Tower at Trinity Terrace, its CCRC affiliate in Fort Worth; and it began development on its third Mirabella CCRC, Mirabella San Francisco Bay, and the new cultural center that will surround it, Park View Plaza—all planned for downtown Foster City, California.
"The SOU School of Business is excited to partner with PRS, an outstanding industry leader in the aging services industry,” says David Harris, Dean of the SOU School of Business and Medford Campus. “We look forward to providing significant learning opportunities for students in this dynamic and growing industry."
Students interested in this path of study are invited to call 541-552-6484, visit www.sou.edu/business, or email Kathy Mattson at mattsonk@sou.edu. For more information about PRS or its AIT and MIT programs, please call (888) 724-6424 or visit www.retirement.org.
About Pacific Retirement Services, Inc. (PRS)
PRS is a nationally acclaimed not-for-profit Senior Living developer, operator, marketer, and manager that serves a growing family of 54 retirement communities and service organizations. PRS has approximately 2,014 employees and provides housing and services to more than 4,850 seniors through its many affiliated organizations. Among these are nine Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs), including Rogue Valley Manor, plus two managed retirement communities and twenty-five affordable housing communities. PRS has introduced a new line of CCRCs, Mirabella, offering unusually spacious penthouse and apartment homes, penthouse view dining, world-class amenities, and health care in all private suites. Mirabella Seattle in South Lake Union will open in 2008, Mirabella Portland in South Waterfront breaks ground May 3, 2008, and Mirabella San Francisco in Foster City is in the design phase, along with the cultural city center, Park View Plaza.
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