When she visited Ghana and Kenya on a family volunteer trip, Anderson decided to respond to the area’s immense need with her capstone. She designed a detailed business plan for a sustainable Community Health Worker (CHW) training program, as well as a Community Health Worker sponsorship program to support health outreach efforts of the MED25 Clinic in Mbita, Kenya.

Through this work, Anderson seeks to provide mechanisms for ongoing support through sponsorships and sustainable income-generating businesses on the ground.

“Health care workers are a vital part of serving the needs of this remote area severely afflicted by malaria, HIV, cholera, and water-related illnesses,” said Anderson who plans to return to Kenya in the near future.

“The training and sponsorship of these workers has the opportunity to have a multiplying impact on their communities as one trained worker supports the needs of multiple families within the village communities.”

Profit Magazine recently ranked the company as Canada’s third fastest growing start-up company in its 11th annual Hot Profit 50 Ranking. To continue to achieve aggressive growth and establish the company as more than a one-hit wonder, Frey believes that he needed more than his instincts. He turned to the Schulich Executive MBA to gain real business know-how, savvy financial planning, and most importantly, strategic insight.

“I feel absolutely prepared for the coming challenges and am confident that the skills and knowledge that I’ve acquired throughout my Kellogg-Schulich EMBA degree will help Teach Away Inc. establish itself as one of Canada’s most innovative and internationally focused corporations,” says Frey.

The good economic scenario in Brazil has strongly increased international business schools' interest in the country. As a result, Business School São Paulo - BSP has expanded its International Study Programs to meet and to complement students' needs.

International Study Programs provide a deep understanding of the economic and business environment in Brazil and Latin America. BSP can customize the program according to the needs of each group. During the past 15 years, BSP has created programs for major business schools throughout the world.

BSP also established another important initiative, the BSP Journal, a publication that includes articles in economics, business, and management from BSP professors and specialists in various subjects.

"We not only produce but also disseminate the scientific knowledge produced by the school,” says Armando Dal Colletto, BSP dean and also journal editor. “The BSP Journal was created with this mission, to address current topics of great evidence in various segments of knowledge.”

New York University
New York University (NYU) Stern's Executive MBA Program has expanded its global efforts by developing its first international residency program in Abu Dhabi this fall.

Northwestern University
During the upcoming winter and spring quarters, students from the Evanston and Miami campuses of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management Executive MBA Program will benefit from Kellogg’s global perspective by completing up to four electives at Kellogg’s international partner schools.

Students will join second-year students on partner school campuses to complete two courses in an intensive week of class. Students also will participate in Global Initiatives in Management (GIM) in China or India. GIM allows students an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of cross-cultural issues and international cooperation. Students will study in depth the economic, political, and cultural climate of their chosen region during the first five weeks in the classroom. The course culminates in a 10-day international journey, where students meet with senior leaders in business and government and conduct primary research to complete their projects.

Kellogg also reported the following news:

• Northwestern University is launching another Executive MBA cohort on its Miami campus. The schedule begins in September 2011 and ends in June two years later with a break during the summer between years. Currently the Miami campus intake begins in January of each year. Both Miami campus options will meet for one long weekend per month—from midday Thursday through midday Sunday.
  
  
• Executive MBA alumni and administration from the Kellogg Executive MBA Admissions Network (KEAN) traveled from near and far to meet on the Miami campus this fall to kick-off this year’s initiative. KEAN looks for opportunities to activate alumni’s personal and professional global networks in support of the Miami EMBA Program. KEAN members reside in Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, England, and the United States.
  
  
• The Kellogg School of Management IMPACT 2011 Series, an ongoing, movable global forum on the future of business, innovation, leadership, and society, features Kellogg faculty and distinguished guest lecturers. The IMPACT 2011 series will take place in London, Mexico City, Chicago, New York, San Francisco, and Hong Kong.

Thunderbird School of Global Management
Thunderbird School of Global Management’s TEM Lab program has partnered with the Exxon Mobil Corporation, Ashoka’s Changemakers, and the International Council for Research on Women (ICRW) to help bring technology to women in the developing world.

Thunderbird MBA students in the TEM Lab program serve as business consultants to three organizations that are focused on supporting innovation in developing countries.

“TEM Lab will add business expertise to the projects, increasing their ability to scale up and, in some cases, develop sustainable cash flows,” says Michael Finney, Thunderbird professor who leads the TEM Lab program. “This means that, ultimately, more people will experience a higher quality of life because of the innovations that these visionaries are implementing.  This partnership also allows TEM Lab to extend the reach of its students into emerging markets throughout the world and furthers the school’s objective of educating leaders committed to creating sustainable prosperity worldwide.” 

Cornell University
Danny Szpiro, director of the Cornell-Queens Executive MBA Program (CQEMBA) has been appointed assistant dean for executive education.

Szpiro will continue in his role as the director of the CQEMBA, but now will have overarching responsibility for all of executive education activities at the Johnson School, including the Cornell Executive MBA Program in Palisades, N.Y. (EMBA), and the non-degree executive development programs.

"I am honored and excited about this appointment," said Szpiro. "I look forward to taking a lead role in ensuring our EMBA Programs support the goal outlined by the Johnson School's strategic plan to continue to innovate and grow programmatically by enhancing the EMBA experience."

Georgetown University
Ashley Baker and Nancy Beer Tobin have joined the staff of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business as directors of program development in the Office of Executive Education. They will develop and implement custom programs with organizations to bring business education to their employees or clients. Current clients include organizations such as Booz Allen Hamilton, Berlitz International, and Spanish-based energy enterprise Abengoa.
 
Baker arrives at Georgetown from Booz Allen Hamilton, where he had been an associate since 2006 with responsibility for program management and business development. He managed client delivery teams across multiple functional disciplines including strategy, communications, performance management, and operations. He also held day-to-day responsibility for maintaining relationships with senior executive clients and developing new business opportunities. 
 
Previously, Baker had served as a start-up member of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and communications director at the North American Securities Administrators Association. Baker also was a Presidential Management Fellow. Baker received his bachelor’s degrees in comparative politics and journalism from Brigham Young University and his master’s degree in international commerce and economic policy from George Mason University.

DePaul University
DePaul University’s Kellstadt Graduate School of Business is celebrating its 10th anniversary of collaboration with the Bahrain Institute of Banking & Finance (BIBF).  

Jacksonville University
The Davis College of Business in Jacksonville University (JU) has just concluded a new student/faculty exchange agreement with the Finance Academy under the Government of the Russian Federation, one of Russia’s oldest institutions of higher education and a leading center for financial and economic research and education.

The program calls for student/faculty exchanges, with the Finance Academy sending a student group to JU’s graduate programs. The Finance Academy enrolls more than 21,000 students annually in degree and diploma programs, and tens of thousands of practitioners attend Finance Academy skill development courses. JU’s 2011 EMBA class is anticipated to be the first JU group to travel to Moscow.

JU also reported the following milestones:

• The Davis College of Business just launched its 28th annual EMBA Program in October with a newly designed set of courses and a major emphasis on executive health and fitness in collaboration with Mayo Clinic Jacksonville. This is the first academic collaboration for Mayo Clinic nationally and includes a personal executive assessment with Mayo physicians and ongoing seminars on a variety of physical, nutritional, and psychological well-being topics. This EMBA Program element is part of JU’s larger emphasis on holistic leadership development within all its graduate programs.
  
  
• Richard J. Cebula was named as the first Billy J. Walker/Wells Fargo Endowed Chair of Finance. Cebula’s experience includes 18 years at Emory University and seven years at Georgia Tech. Most recently, he served as the Shirley & Philip Solomons Eminent Scholar in Economics for 11 years at Armstrong Atlantic University. He is the author of 13 books and nearly 500 articles in scholarly journals and is the editor, co-editor, or associate editor of seven journals.

NUS
NUS Business School marked its 45th year with a new state-of-the-art flagship building, which is named after Mochtar Riady, founder and chairman of Lippo Group, in recognition of the generous gift from the group.

Speakers at the grand opening ceremony included Ng Eng Hen, minister for education and second minister for defense, Mochtar Riady, Wong Ngit Liong, chair of the NUS Board of Trustees, Professor Tan Chorh Chuan, president of NUS, S. Dhanabalan, chairman of the NUS Business School Management Advisory Board, and Bernard Yeung, dean and Stephen Riady Distinguished Professor of NUS Business School.

The five-story high central atrium of the nine-story Mochtar Riady Building serves as a focal point. Surrounding the atrium are seminar rooms, study spaces, offices, and other informal interaction zones that facilitate the exchange of ideas and knowledge, as well as foster stronger bonds and a greater sense of community and belonging.

In recognition of the design and construction efforts to preserve the environment, the building received the Green Mark Gold Award from the Building and Construction Authority.  The building is designed for energy efficiency, as well as water efficiency.

The school also debuted its 45th anniversary commemorative book, Business Class – Lessons from High Fliers, at the ceremony. This book revisits 45 years of school achievements through the ventures and adventures of its alumni, deans, and academic staff.

In other news, the Sept. 23, 2010, issue of The Economist featured current and former faculty members in an article about genetics and its role in patterns of behavior that are relevant to business.

The article features the research of Richard Arvey, head of the management and organization department at NUS Business School, who has been looking into how genes interact with different types of environments to create entrepreneurial zeal and the ability to lead others.  In one study, Arvey and his team worked with 1,285 pairs of identical twins and 849 pairs of same-sex fraternal ones, to explain how genes affect the level of extroversion.

The article also mentioned the work of Song Zhaoli, also from the management and organization department, which included an analysis of DNA samples from 123 Singaporean couples to study the relationship between genes and work-related variables, such as job satisfaction, as well as that of Michael Zyphur, who is exploring hormones that might be indicative of business-related behavior.

University of California, Irvine
Tony Hansford has been named assistant dean of the Executive MBA and Health Care Executive MBA Programs at The Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine.

University of Pennsylvania
Bernadette “Bernie” Birt became the executive director of Wharton | San Francisco in September.  

Birt brings to Wharton a wealth of experience and insight on Executive MBA Programs that will enable her to have a quick and positive impact on the administration of the MBA Program for Executives at Wharton | San Francisco. Birt comes to Wharton from Kellogg’s Executive MBA Program where she served as the executive director and was responsible for the end-to-end direction and administration of admissions, marketing, budgeting, and operations - serving more than 400 students. Birt will work directly with Vice Dean Doug Collom and the Wharton | San Francisco team and also with the MBA Program for Executives team in Philadelphia. Birt also will play a significant role in the growth of Wharton on the West Coast.

In other news, effective in November, Anjani Jain, vice dean and director of Wharton’s Graduate Division, will assume the role of vice dean of the MBA Program for Executives, and Howard (“Howie”) Kaufold, WEMBA’s deputy vice dean and director, will assume the role of vice dean of the MBA Program.  

Jain joined Wharton’s faculty in 1986, completing his doctoral studies in operations research at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Before studying at UCLA, he received bachelor’s degrees in physics and mathematics from Indore University in India and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. In 1993, Jain was named director of the MBA Program. While continuing to teach in the MBA and Executive Education programs, he also took on the responsibility of overseeing academic, co-curricular, admissions, placement, communications training, and leadership development activities of the MBA program.  

Kaufold came to Wharton in 1980 and joined Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives in 1993. He worked as an associate director in the Wharton Graduate Division from 1984 until 1993 when he joined WEMBA.

During his time at WEMBA, he enhanced the program’s reputation as one of the strongest Executive MBA Programs in the world and helped to expand the program to the West Coast with the launch of Wharton | San Francisco.  He has served as a constant advocate for maintaining the rigor of the Executive MBA curriculum, adhering to the principle that there should be no difference between the degrees awarded to full-time MBA alumni and WEMBA alumni.

Washington University
The Olin Executive MBA Program kicked off its first Making a Difference Community Service EMBA Project in September. 

In partnership with the Gephardt Institute at Washington University in St. Louis, Linda Kilwin, director of Executive Programs Alumni Lifelong Learning and Relations, and Akash Sharma, EMBA student, organized a Habitat for Humanity Build.  The EMBA team consisted of EMBA students, alumni, and staff.

“Linda Kilwin’s resolve in organizing the lead-off project for our Olin EMBA community service initiative was inspiring, and I am very happy that she asked me to help,” says Sharma, radiologist at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and assistant professor at Washington University School of Medicine.

Arizona State University
The W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University is building even more innovative leadership components into its highly ranked Executive MBA Program this year.

The W. P. Carey Executive MBA already features a strong foundation of leadership course work, including a Thought Leadership speaker series with top business leaders.  At orientation, the Executive MBA Leadership Experience begins with a series of executive leadership skills workshops, and includes a high-impact leadership course and a follow up 360-degree assessment at the end of the two-year program.  In addition, every Executive MBA student takes part in a dedicated one-hour, face-to-face session with a professional executive coach.

“We want to provide a leadership option that goes beyond just having our students take a leadership class,” explains Beth Walker, associate dean for the W. P. Carey MBA.  “We have developed a leadership experience that is woven throughout the curriculum. 

“Students begin with assessments, identify strengths and weaknesses, and create a personal development plan that identifies the weaknesses that they would like to improve. Students then attend workshops, engage in 360-degree peer reviews, and receive individualized executive coaching to build their leadership skills. At the program’s end, they reflect to see how much they have grown as leaders.”

Aventis School of Management
Aventis School of Management will incorporate Sun Tzu Art of War Statagems into its Executive MBA Program for 2011.

This new module was developed through the research initiative of the Sun Tzu Art of War Institute, the Strategic Leadership Center of Aventis School of Management. The incorporation of Chinese management studies aims to help business managers adopt a new paradigm in management and strategy.

With the world possibly shifting toward multi-polar power, the ensuing chaos requires a nimble approach in strategic orientation. The traditional strategic approach works in stable, predictable environments, but becomes less relevant in more unstable times. This program will help leaders develop more effective strategies in the new economic world order, says Professor Foo Check Teck, dean of Aventis School of Management.

The course incorporates contents from classical Chinese texts and the latest research from the journal Chinese Management Studies (SSCI) to provide students with different perspectives of management in a global environment.  It also serves to bridge a greater understanding of the Chinese approach toward management, offering a balanced East-West approach.

Columbia University
Columbia Business School recently launched a new Executive MBA Program option, EMBA Saturday.

Complementing the school’s other successful Executive MBA Programs, EMBA Saturday will meet weekly on Saturdays only at Columbia University’s Morningside campus. In September, the program started accepting applications for its inaugural EMBA Saturday class, which will begin in May 2011 and graduate in May 2013.

“The MBA degree is a critical tool for success in the complex arena of business leadership,” says Glenn Hubbard, Russell L. Carson Professor of Finance and Economics and dean of the Columbia Business School. “EMBA Saturday is a first-in-class innovation in executive MBA programming that recognizes current employment trends and the needs of a new class of executives.”  
 
The program focuses on meeting the needs of high-talent professionals, says Ethan Hanabury, senior associate dean for degree programs. “EMBA Saturday in particular will solve the dilemma facing exceptional talent in competitive industries,” says Hanabury. “Now these top achievers can pursue an MBA without forfeiting a hard-earned spot in a top firm and without having to secure corporate sponsorship.”  

EMBA Saturday students will meet each week for 24 months, excluding holidays and other breaks. The program runs for six terms, in contrast to five terms for the Friday/Saturday options. Both EMBA Programs include the same amount of course credits as the school’s MBA program and follow the same rigorous curriculum and admissions standards.  After completing the core curriculum, EMBA Saturday students also will have the opportunity to take elective courses with students in other EMBA Programs as their schedules permit.

Fordham University
Fordham University recently launched a Wellness Program within its Executive MBA Program.  

The Wellness Program consists of proactive initiatives that enhance the body, mind, and soul within the Jesuit tradition of educating the entire individual.  Sample activities include yoga, meditation, nutrition, planning, self-awareness, and balance and its importance for all individuals, including executives.

IE Business School
IE Business School and Brown University recently launched a new Executive MBA with a strong online component.

The IE Brown Executive MBA combines IE's strength in interdisciplinary management education and Brown’s excellence in the humanities, and social, biological, and physical sciences.

IE has been collaborating with Brown University for nearly two years, and spring 2011 will mark the beginning of the first joint degree program from the two institutions.  The IE Brown Executive MBA is a new kind of program created specifically for the entrepreneurially minded, globally aware, and inquisitive executive.

During a period of 15 months, IE Brown Executive MBAs will participate in about 300 sessions – via IE’s proven online methodology – and in five face-to-face sessions on the two schools’ campuses in Madrid and Providence.  The curriculum, which has been newly developed by both faculties, delivers training in all functional areas of management that is deepened with wider perspectives from the humanities, social sciences, engineering, and life sciences.

For example, a module on liberal arts and critical studies draws on disciplines such as history, philosophy, legal studies, and psychology to uncover the underpinnings of society – from the dialogue between religion and secularization to capitalism and its hidden economies. 

Loyola Marymount University
Loyola Marymount University Executive MBA Program alumni designed and are teaching a new Field Consulting Project with Small Companies course at the beginning of the program’s second year.

Adjunct faculty with some alumni taught a previous incarnation of the course. The new course adds significant alumni involvement, greater academic rigor, and better integration with the rest of the program.

For the course, student teams work on a real-world consulting project to identify and address the major strategic issue of a client company, determine a viable course of action, and implement their recommendations. Alumni entrepreneurs who currently lead their own ventures teach the course.

Students worked in their existing program study teams. Each team was assigned a single client. During one class session, student teams presented their understanding of the issues and their solutions to a dragon panel of CEO- and CFO-level alumni. Client companies provided feedback to the University on the effectiveness of the students’ actions and recommendations.

Loyola University Maryland
The art of leading people and organizations in developing relationships, creating business solutions, and closing deals in a global marketplace requires confidence.

Loyola University Maryland’s newly revamped EMBA curriculum focuses on transformational leadership, innovation, and integration. Gloria Phillips-Wren, academic director, wanted the program’s opening residency to blend academics, professional development, and the enhancement of social skills. Loyola EMBA faculty reinforced that aim by introducing two Harvard Business School cases: the Robert Mondavi Corporation and the Chardonnay Shortage at Mondavi Winery.

Marquette University
Marquette University’s Executive MBA Program made an innovative change to the program that began this fall, moving from a 100 percent classroom-based program to a hybrid or blended format.

The schedule offers working professionals maximum flexibility to advance their business knowledge without interrupting their business lives. Classes meet every other Saturday, with three periods of residency. In-class time accounts for about 60 percent of the program.

The EMBA Program begins with an immersion week at Marquette and continues with on-campus meetings every other Saturday. For the second residency, students take an international trip in spring or summer. The last residency kicks off the final semester, running Thursday through Saturday.
 
Students spend valuable time in the classroom interacting with fellow students - discussing, debating, and problem solving.  They continue the learning online for the remaining 40 percent of the time, accessing learning resources from the comfort and convenience of home, office, or anywhere in the world.  This new format also accommodates the different learning styles of students. For example, students without an accounting background can spend more individual time with the material without holding back the CPAs in the class that need less time on this topic.
 
The market has responded well to the new format.  The first class filled at 30 students and had a short wait list, significantly higher than the enrollment the past few years.

University of Denver
The Executive MBA Program at the University of Denver Daniels College of Business has revised and updated its curriculum for launch this fall.

By meeting and engaging with current and former students, employers representing an array of industries, and faculty, Daniels has developed program enhancements that add relevance and rigor to the 36-year-old EMBA Program. Changes include:

• Greater emphasis on corporate social responsibility, environmental ethics, sustainable development, and entrepreneurship
  
  
• A 14-month Social Capitol Project that reflects the core values at the Daniels College
  For the project, students use their business acumen and leadership skills for the greater good. Working in small teams throughout several terms, they make sustainable contributions to non-profits or communities.
  
  
• Business/New-Venture Planning course at the beginning of the EMBA Program
  The move of the course to the start of the program allows students to take a more systematic and disciplined approach. They can make use of all they learn during the program as they put together the final deliverable just before graduation. An external panel of experts with venture capitalists, angel investors, and faculty members review business plans.
  
  
• Hot topics seminars
  Hot topics seminars have been inserted throughout the 18-month program, allowing students to enhance their capabilities in targeted areas. Sample topics include media relations, project management, and executive presentation skills.

At the culmination of the experience, students pull together EMBA themes of business acumen, leadership intelligence, and execution competence at the college’s Colorado outdoor leadership facility: The Nature Place. This transformational weekend includes physical, mental, and team challenges.

For more information, visit www.daniels.du.edu or contact Barbara Kreisman, assistant dean, at barbara.kreisman@du.edu.

University of Minnesota
The Carlson Executive MBA Program at the University of Minnesota piloted an orientation module, Working Effectively in Teams, which was developed and taught by Carlson School Dean Alison Davis-Blake, in conjunction with Associate Professors Joyce Bono and Mary Zellmer-Bruhn.

“Such a program is a critical component of our program’s orientation process,” says Kathryn Carlson, assistant dean for the Carlson MBA Programs. “And the fact that we would have had such intimate involvement by noted professors, as well as the school’s dean, is testimony to the importance we place on both the orientation process and the topic of team performance.”

Designed to help first-year students apply research on the principles of effective teams to their work and study teams, this highly interactive module required them to reflect on individual work styles and preferences while also learning strategies for building team processes around performance, managing conflict within their teams, and finding the best ways to use the individual talents of their teammates while acknowledging the diversity in work styles.  The module concluded with a panel of second-year students who presented examples of actual situations and the ways that the effective team training helped them through the group component of their first year.

Each team developed a comprehensive team charter that provides the structure for teams to leverage their strengths and expertise while not allowing differences to interfere with group performance.  While each charter covered many of the same areas such as expectations, norms, and conflict resolution, the manner in which each team approached their charter, and even the team’s final product, looked drastically different.

Students will keep the same study team for each academic year of the program.  Because of this, the students will revisit the processes and strategies that they learned in year one, reflect on team dynamics, and think about the application of those strategies to their year two teams.

University of Virginia
The University of Virginia Darden School of Business is launching a new MBA for Executives Global (GEMBA) Program.

Designed for experienced executives with a global mindset, the 20-month GEMBA Program will be based on Darden’s formula: the case study method, expert MBA teaching faculty, and a tight-knit learning community. Professor S. Venkataraman facilitated the design of the program and serves as faculty leader.

“This new MBA format will deliver the Darden experience for which we are so well-known but in an international format,” says Darden Dean Robert F. Bruner. “The program will enhance the skills of high-potential executives who need to be ready on day one to do business in any market around the globe. Participants will acquire essential knowledge and master the disciplines of business. They will learn to be effective in diverse cultures and contexts and will analyze their current business challenges with some of the brightest minds in the business world.”

Starting in fall 2011, the Darden GEMBA Program will bring together executives from diverse industries and backgrounds. Darden will begin accepting applications this fall.

Each class will participate in six modules, including Leading the Global Enterprise and What’s Next? Creating the Future. Two-week residencies will take place in several countries throughout the world, including India, China, and the United States. The U.S. residency will include courses in Charlottesville, Virginia, and nearby Washington, D.C.

“The GEMBA will provide an unparalleled international experience for students,” says Peter Rodriguez, associate dean for international affairs. “Participants will immerse themselves in experiential learning opportunities that will push their boundaries, assumptions, and beliefs. Darden’s faculty will travel to each location with students to provide the highest quality educational experience and to reinforce overarching themes from one locale to another.”

Between modules, GEMBA students will continue to learn via online distance learning tools.

For more information, please visit: www.darden.virginia.edu/web/GEMBA or contact communication@darden.virginia.edu.

Virginia Tech University
Executive MBA students in the national cohort are the first to use iPad technology within the EMBA Program at Virginia Tech, to rave reviews.

“During the three-hour roundtrip bus commute from Northern Virginia to Washington D.C. each day, I have found the iPad to be a valuable, time saving tool,” says Sean McDonald, EMBA student and lead associate at Booz Allen Hamilton. “The iPad has enabled me to read case studies, download iBooks, review lecture slides, listen to podcasts of lectures, or watch recorded lectures. Without the adoption of this technology, I would be struggling to stay organized and productive.”

Five EMBA faculty members representing different business departments within the Pamplin College of Business are the first to explore and integrate this most up-to-date tech tool into their teaching culture replacing and complementing textbooks, business cases, and other reading materials already used by the program.  These faculty members are Parviz Ghandforoush, Sattar Mansi, Eloise Coupey, Steve Markham, and Debra Salbador. 

“Students in BIT 5644 were given an iPAD statistics APP to use as a supplement to their course textbook,” says Ghandforoush. “This APP is easily downloaded into their iPAD and can be used as a tutorial to study and practice topics covered in the course without having the textbook. Students were also provided e-books and cases on their iPADs as part of course requirements. E-books and cases were readily accessible through student iPADs in class for discussion and presentation purposes.”

Since the inception of the program in 2004, the EMBA Program has partnered with Apple, and students have benefited by using Apple Macbooks, iPods, and now iPads in their learning experience.  On their first day of classes, Aaron Davis, senior systems engineer for Apple, presented an overview of Apple MacBooks, iPads, and use of iChat as a team collaboration and communication tool.  In addition, Justin Davenport, director of information services at Virginia Tech’s national capital region, shared details about the information services available for students.
  
“It is a great portable tool,” says Dannis Tan, EMBA student and project manager for NII Holdings. “Web browsing is easy, and apps add a good deal of practicality and expand the uses of the iPad. I use it to take notes (with Penultimate), do research, and save the information I deem useful. I have also loaded it with the class presentations so that I can review it whenever I have time. Last but not least, podcasts and iTunes University are great complement to classes at campus.”

University of Tennessee
The only program of its kind in the country, the full-time MBA Entrepreneur Fellow Program at the University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville, College of Business Administration, just began this year.

"The goal of the entrepreneur fellow program is to recruit the best and brightest MBA students who have an entrepreneurial drive and will work on early-stage, technology-enabled businesses while completing their degrees," says Tom Graves, director of operations for UT's Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. "Through course work, applied-learning experiences, faculty collaboration, and mentorship, aspiring student entrepreneurs develop the skills and connections they need to successfully launch their new ventures."
 
Each UT MBA Fellow receives a $30,000 scholarship – $10,000 for each of the program's three semesters. Satisfactory progress toward launching or growing their business idea is required to continue receiving funding.
 
"The Entrepreneur Fellow program makes an MBA degree possible for some of the country's best and brightest young entrepreneurs," says Amy Cathey, executive director of UT's full-time MBA program. "Starting businesses in this region is good for our community, university, college, program, and students. We hope to grow the number of MBA fellow scholarships available so that even more students can take advantage of these opportunities in the future."