Ebeid to SBT: “Expand our international footprint”

Fred Ebeid addresses SBT advisory board members.

University of Wisconsin-Parkside School of Business and Technology (SBT) Dean Fred Ebeid covered a favorite topic when the SBT's advisory board gathered Monday, Jan. 23: the importance of a global education. It was the SBT's first meeting of business advisors since Ebeid, Chancellor Debbie Ford, and Global Education Director Jamie Wang made a fall semester trip to China to sign student partnership agreements with two universities in Beijing.

The trip was further proof to Ebeid that UW-Parkside must be a global educator.

"We are hoping to expand our international footprint," Ebeid stated. "Ideally, we'd like to send students overseas for a semester or two. But the reality is that short-term trips--two or three weeks at a time--also work. They are not as daunting or expensive."

The Dean said he is working to create a fund to help students attain global educational experiences.

Chancellor Ford called the trip to China, her first visit to that country, "rewarding and inspiring." She went on to say there was a great deal of interest among the Chinese students she met during an open house on studying at UW-Parkside.

Ford then updated board members on the university's plans to adopt a four college model. She told them the SBT would become the College of Business and Technology with the current College of Arts and Sciences eventually dividing into three colleges.

"This proposal had the full support of the UW System's Board of Regents and it is being done to enhance the university's effectiveness," Ford said.

The Chancellor pointed out to the business group that UW-Parkside graduated 100 more students in 2010-2011 than in 2009-2010, a 20 percent increase. She also noted the praise U.S. Senator Ron Johnson gave the university during a recent stop in Kenosha saying the community should, "sit up and take note of the good work that is going on at both UW-Parkside and Gateway Technical College and to see these institutions as examples of not waiting around for help but taking up the initiatives and moving things forward!"

Also during the meeting, SBT advisory board members met new UW-Parkside Director of Development David Diaz. They were also updated on the work at the Ralph Jaeschke Solution for Economic Growth Center where more than 50 projects have given nearly 300 students hands-on experiences in the past year. And Professor Peter Knight spoke about UW-Parkside's unique partnership with Procubed and its "tremendously exciting" on-campus collaboration aimed at reinventing the wheelchair.

During the meeting, the advisory board welcomed three new members: Steve Baumgartner of InPro Corp., Uline HR Director Danielle Gough, and banker Kam Buhler.  

The next meeting of the SBT advisory board is Thursday, April 26, 2012.

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ABOUT THIS STORY:

Story Status: Archived
Publish date: 1/27/2012

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