Touro University Worldwide is committed to social justice, intellectual pursuit and philanthropic duty. This philosophy is derived from the Judaic foundation on which the University was originally founded and a value system that welcomes all cultures and backgrounds.
To imagine someone without education is similar to picturing them being denied their basic human rights. A much adverse result would be someone not being empowered enough to lead their everyday life. Needless to say that the ways in which illiteracy affects an individual is similar to the ways it affects the entire nation. Education becomes priceless, when it aids in understanding the value of everything around us. And to enhance the value of education itself, is the noblest cause. Educational institutions are constantly striving to add value to the careers and personal lives of the youth, and Touro University Worldwide does a commendable exhibition of the same.
TUW’s mission is to offer online degree programs to serve the needs of adult learners (service to society), professionals (intellectual pursuit), and the underserved (social justice). It is a 100% online University with no residential requirements, allowing students to study any time and from anywhere, using a state of the art technology, which enables students to access all course materials online with no additional costs for books.
Although TUW is a completely online university, it does not refrain from promoting a democratic learning environment that provides students with the settings to explore real-world cases, and impact social justice, some of TUW’s degree programs are in the areas of Human services which provide students with the skills, and competencies needed to excel in careers in the large and growing areas of helping individuals, families, groups, communities and organizations.
Touro University Worldwide’s story starts with the founding of Touro University International (TUI) by Dr. Yoram Neumann and Late Dr. Edith Neumann in 1998. Dr. Yoram, Chancellor and CEO, is one of the pioneers of online higher education. With significant knowledge of the sphere, Dr. Neumann dedicated his life for high quality online learning. Dr. Yoram Neumann developed the Robust Learning Model and its components along with Dr. Edith Neumann, the former Provost and Chief Academic Officer. The Robust Learning Model, which is a multi-factorial model based on the basic belief that successful learning outcomes depend on multiple factors employed together in a holistic approach, was the basis of the development of the online university.
TUW was the first university in the world to offer a regionally accredited doctorate program online, with no residency requirements. This aspect was also beneficial to government and military students. Both founders led TUI for 11 years from 1998 to 2009 and during their time, 14,000 students graduated and the university built a catalog of more than 50,000 courses. However, in 2007, TUI was sold to a private equity group. In 2008, Dr. Bernard Luskin founded Touro University Worldwide to replace the educational void that the sale of TUI left. Both founders returned to the Touro system in July 2012 to assume leadership of Touro University Worldwide. The university is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC).
Instilling the Drive for Success
TUW promotes social justice and social change to its students through an advanced curricula developed in house by TUW doctorate faculty. In addition, TUW has extremely affordable tuition and a university-wide scholarship program focused on student retention and graduation, making the student cost of learning and attaining a degree well below most comparable institutions, therefore diverse populations consider TUW as a lucrative opportunity. The Chronicle of Higher ED ranked TUW as #1 in the private nonprofit category of 4 year colleges with the largest increase in percentages of underrepresented minorities.
TUW graduates are prepared to enter the workforce or enhance their careers according to their degree of interest. Graduates at TUW; gaining the knowledge, skills competencies needed to excel in careers in the large and growing areas of Business Management, Psychology, Human Services and Health Sciences, in various types of organizations such as nonprofit, private, public, government and military organizations.
Endeavoring for Excellence
Touro University Worldwide offers Associate, Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral degree programs to meet the needs of students throughout the world. In a challenging but supportive environment, TUW’s curricula are designed to prepare graduates to enter the workforce for the first time, advance existing professional careers and or enhance their personal goals. All of TUW degree programs are taught by faculty who are subject matter experts and professionals in their disciplinary fields, and are dedicated to the faculty-student engagement experience in the virtual classroom. TUW has three schools viz., The School of Business Administration, The School of Psychology, and the Edith Neumann School of Health and Human Services, which host 19 degree programs and a vast amount of specializations within each program to meet graduates needs for today’s careers.
As previously mentioned, TUW developed a university-wide scholarship program. The scholarship provides great discounts on tuition and continually promotes enrollment toward graduation. TUW also provides scholarship to Military personnel and their families. Depending upon the degree program, students can get up to 30% tuition discounts to help them fund their desired educational goals.
Exhibiting Distinction
Dr. Neumann’s expertise in online learning earned him the ‘Establishing Best Practices in Online Education’ award from the Academy of Business Administration, and the award for ‘Unique Achievements in Distance Learning in Management’ from Hyundai Motor America. Most recently, he and Dr. Edith Neumann were awarded the Gold Hermes award for their journal article “The Robust Learning Model (RLM): A comprehensive approach to a new online university” published in The Journal of College Teaching and Learning. The Robust Learning Model is considered one of the primary pillars of online-learning paradigms.
One of TUW’s distinguished alumni is Michael Eleff, MD. He received his BA from the University of Pennsylvania, his MD from Case Western Reserve University and is a Board-Certified Medical Oncologist. He has held senior management positions in several Fortune 500 companies as well as start-up ventures. He has been a Regional Vice President and Medical Director for Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield based in the East Coast. He and his wife Toby, who have been married nearly 40 years, are the proud parents of 5 married children and a rewarding count of grandchildren. All of their children are Touro graduates and 2 preceded Dr. Eleff in receiving their MBAs from TUW.
