For the first time in almost 50 years, Le Moyne College is offering classes in downtown Syracuse.
There’s no room for growth at Le Moyne’s Salt Springs Road Campus. So the school rented out a long-vacant wing of the Larned M & T Building on Hanover Square, to house its new occupational therapy program. President Linda LeMura says this brings the Jesuit school back downtown, where classes were first held in 1946.
"We care deeply about the future of our city. It means a lot to us and to our students, because we know we have so much to offer adding to the intellectual dimensions of the city, but also the youth and vitality our Le Moyne students bring to this area.”
The OT program, which started last year, supplies professionals in a growing field. It’s consistently ranked as one of the top 20 fastest growing professions requiring a college degree. Program chair Ivelisse Lazzarini says one advantage of being downtown is that it allows students to see the practical difficulties of someone who might need an occupational therapist.
"How beautiful is it for us to tell our students, just go outside, and tell me how people you see in wheelchairs. Are they safe? Are there enough ramps? Are they accessible?”
