Barry University’s Adrian Dominican School of Education (ADSOE) is set to depart the Orlando area when it closes the doors of its Alafaya location on June 30, 2015, after 15 years of operation.
ADSOE has operated a location in Orlando since 1999 following Barry’s purchase of the University of Orlando. At the time of the purchase, Barry retained Orlando’s School of Law and School of Education, which merged with Barry’s existing Adrian Dominican School of Education. The ADSOE Orlando programs were originally housed in the Graduate Studies building located on the campus of the School of Law. When Barry Law experienced rapid enrollment growth, the ADSOE Orlando programs relocated in 2005 to the Alafaya location, signing a 10-year lease.
The Alafaya site was chosen because the new construction provided Barry with the opportunity to design the interior space to meet the ADSOE's needs, including a Counseling Clinic.
Since 1999, Barry University graduated more than 350 students from its Orlando location. A large number of these graduates were engaged in scholarship by presenting at state and national conferences and publishing in refereed and non-refereed journals and newsletters. Some were recipients of competitive national scholarships and awards.
ADSOE Orlando students also engaged in service in the Orlando area through the Barry University Counselor Association Orlando (BUCAO) and the award-winning Chi Sigma Iota-Beta Upsilon Chapter (CSI-BU). Beginning in 2007, BUCAO became integral to bringing a sense of community and professional identity to the Orlando campus counseling students. Over the years, students engaged in community service activities such as annually raising awareness about the needs of our migrant farmers and their families, domestic violence, Haiti Earthquake Disaster Relief Effort, homelessness, and teen pregnancy by initiating clothes, toys, house good, and food drives to donate items to area shelters and agencies.
A year after starting BUCAO, Orlando students were granted the occasion to join the Chi Sigma Iota- Beta Upsilon Chapter (CSI-BU) as student members and even were given a position on the CSI-BU’s Executive Council to ensure that the Orlando counseling students had a voice and could participate in the organization’s activities.
In addition to the students, many dedicated faculty and staff have taught Barry students at the Alafaya location. A pivotal member of the ADSOE Orlando faculty at its inception was A. Eugene Tootle, EdD, former Dean of the University of Orlando School of Education. Tootle was instrumental in the reconfiguration of programs and courses to integrate what had independently been offered by the University of Orlando and Barry University.
The faculty and staff at ADSOE’s Orlando site will be best remembered for creating a close-knit learning community and build partnerships throughout the Orlando area.
Soon after ADSOE moved to the Alafaya site, Barry's School of Professional and Career Education (PACE) moved one of its Orlando sites into space contiguous to ADSOE’s location at Alafaya. Through the duration of the lease, ADSOE and PACE have shared administrative staff, jointly hosted social and academic events, and enjoyed great comradery among the faculty of both Schools. PACE will continue to operate in the Orlando area and will consolidate its location with the present location at Florida Mall Business Center.
Due to changing demographics in the Orlando area the ADSOE-OR program was gradually "taught out" and the PACE program was relocated. The last cohort of ADSOE Orlando students were admitted in the fall 2012 semester and will graduate prior to the closing of the Alafaya site.
As a celebration of the time the Adrian Dominican School of Education has spent in the Orlando area, the School hosted an Open House on April 25, 2015, which was attended by students, alumni, and former and current faculty and staff. ADSOE will continue operations at six locations including at Barry’s main campus in Miami Shores and in The Bahamas in both Freeport and Nassau.