WINONA LAKE, IN – Grace College of Winona Lake, Ind., which recently partnered with OrthoWorx to create the nation’s first graduate certificate program in orthopedic regulatory and clinical affairs, has named Allyn Decker as director for the new program.
This program, offered by Grace College’s OrthoWorx Center of Excellence in Regulatory and Clinical Affairs, through Grace’s School of Adult and Community Education, is being launched to meet a crucial need within the orthopedic sector. The program will provide participants with the expertise required to meet an existing high demand for individuals with orthopedic regulatory and clinical training.
Decker will leave his current position as vice president of organizational development at Lake City Bank, Warsaw, Ind., where he developed “Lake City University” and has worked since 1997. In doing so he will turn his focus back to higher education as program director at Grace College. Decker taught at Grace from 1986 to 1997, serving during that time as chair for the communication department.
“Building this new graduate certificate program at Grace College is an honor and a unique opportunity to enrich the ‘Orthopedic Capital of the World,’” said Decker. “Educating local orthopedic professionals will make their industry — and our community — much more ready to face tomorrow’s challenges.”
Grace Provost Dr. Bill Katip expressed his pleasure at welcoming Decker as the new program director. “Allyn’s unique experience and expertise in designing high-quality corporate training programs involving regulatory requirements and his proven track record in higher education make him a wonderful fit for our new director position,” he said. “Allyn understands our community and orthopedic companies, as evidenced through his role as moderator of the Kosciusko Leadership Academy.”
Decker is a certified professional in Learning and Performance, having received the highest possible certification offered by the American Society of Training and Development in 2008. He received the Bank Administration Institute’s Training Innovator Award the same year. Decker has also served as a Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce Education Subcommittee member and moderator for the annual education summit since 2003.
Decker also sits on the Kosciusko County Convention and Visitors’ Bureau board. In 1996, Decker received the Alva J. McClain Outstanding Teacher Award from Grace College, and was given Presidential Citation by Lake City Bank in 2009.
Individuals interested in participating in the nation’s first and only graduate program in orthopedic regulatory and clinical affairs should contact Allyn Decker at deckerap@grace.edu or call (574) 372-5100, ext. 6509. With its proximity to Warsaw, the “Orthopedic Capital of the World,” Grace is specially positioned to offer this program, allowing for its graduates to receive their education from experts within the orthopedic sector.