Today’s educational leaders have a significant impact on the climate, attitude, and reputation of their institutions. They serve as the foundation for learning communities to function and thrive. Educational institutions may become excellent incubators of learning places where students are not merely educated but also challenged, fostered, and encouraged.
Successful educational leaders recognize the value of creating a sense of community and fostering collaborative, inclusive learning environments. Dr. Bradford Sims (President of Capitol Technology University) is a successful educational leader at the forefront of modern leadership trends.
A Proficient Career
After high school, Dr. Sims attended a university and earned a bachelor’s degree in construction management. When he graduated, he worked for three different companies in the industrial construction sector across the United States, and decided to stay in the construction industry for the rest of his career. After five years, the dynamic leader opted to pursue a master’s degree in construction management. Dr. Sims hoped that this would help him enhance his management skills and allow him to advance to a position like Vice President of Operations. “I really enjoyed the high-level strategic overview, and it just made sense to improve this skillset with an advanced degree in construction management,” says Dr. Sims.
As he completed the master’s degree, his former bachelor’s university offered him a graduate teaching position where he could pursue a doctorate at the same time. At that time in his life, the educational leader decided just to go ahead and finish his degree. After completing his doctorate, Dr. Sims began applying for employment in both industry and universities across the United States. Because he had both a doctorate and industry experience, numerous colleges and universities wanted to interview him for open assistant professor jobs in construction management. He subsequently opted to pursue a career in higher education as a construction management instructor. “I then went onto several universities, building very successful applied degree programs as a professor but then moved into administration starting as a Department Head and then to being a Dean of the College of Technology, then to being the Chief Academic Officer for an aviation university, to now being the President of Capitol Technology University,” shares Dr. Sims.
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The mission of Capitol Technology University is to educate individuals for professional opportunities in engineering, computer and information sciences, and business.
Student-focused Programs and Services
Capitol Technology University provides bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in high demand industry segments. The key purpose of the premier university is to either offer a student a well-paying job for the rest of their lives or to assist them in progressing in their current job. This career-focused university has many lecturers who work full-time in the industry. To accommodate working students, many bachelor’s degrees are offered on-campus or online, while master’s and doctoral degrees are offered entirely online.
Dr. Sims proudly asserts, “Georgetown University released a report using data from the expanded College Scorecard; this report ranks 4,500 colleges and universities by return on investment titled, “A First Try at ROI: Ranking 4,500 Colleges.” Capitol Technology University was ranked 213 out of 4,500 with a 20-year NPV, ranked 141 out of 4,500 after a 30-year NPV, and over a 40-year lifetime of work, ranked 120 out of 4,500 college/universities.”
Creating Strong Corporate Culture
Because Capitol Technology University focuses on providing education that creates or advances a student’s career in high-demand industry markets, the university’s culture encourages staff to work together to make the university a success. Each employee is a part of the process that allows a student to get a job quickly and effortlessly or advance in their current career while working full-time. The culture of the premier university is one of internal satisfaction, knowing that every graduate receives a high return on their investment in education while simultaneously meeting the needs of numerous industries that drive the US economy.
Since its foundation in 1927 by a US Navy veteran who began training students in the new and rapidly growing field of radios, Capitol Technology University has maintained its focus and standard. Providing only education that practically ensures a graduate a high-paying job that allows them to support themselves and their family for the rest of their lives and knowing that every position at the university contributes to this laser focus creates a strong corporate culture in this non-profit, private, career focused university.
Catering to the Industry Needs
“The added responsibilities do to COVID and the economy, challenged the university on how to maintain financial stability (which we do) while continuing to offer high-quality education for great careers (which we do),” declares Bradford Sims. The dynamic leader and his team continue to see an over 85% placement rate among undergraduates. More importantly, they offer all undergraduates a guarantee that if they do not find work within 90 days, they can return and receive a free certificate in another area from Capitol Tech.
This year, Capitol Technology University began offering all new undergraduates a minimum $50,000 starting salary, or they and their parents’ quarterly loan payments will be repaid until their salary exceeds this amount. Full-time working adults completing doctoral degrees continue to grow by word of mouth. Dr. Sims states, “We have structured both our masters and doctoral degrees to support industry needs and the needs of our students working full-time jobs to be successful.”
Focusing On Future Needs Of Industry
The primary goals of Capitol Technology University in 2022 are to continue developing new degree programs that support industry needs for the future and to attract more students to its variety of bachelor, master’s, and doctoral degree programs. “One great example of this effort was the creation of degrees in critical infrastructure in 2018,” states Dr. Sims.
These degree programs emphasized the facilities that were identified in the Department of Homeland Security; 16 critical infrastructure sectors. Then, in May of 2021, a big incident occurred when an attack on the colonial pipeline’s computerized equipment caused the halting of operations. Before it was made into the news, Capitol Technology University was already looking into the future needs of industry and will continue to be a leader in the future staying ahead of the curve with a time sensitive and entrepreneurial mindset.
