A delegation of distinguished international visitors toured the University of Colorado Denver’s ESL Academy and Business School on February 16 to engage in lively rounds of questions and answers about industry-education innovation incubators, potential international educational partnerships, customized English language instruction, and many other topics. The guests included leadership from international universities and government agencies representing India, Vietnam, Brazil, Colombia, Philippines, Bangladesh, South Africa, Ghana, and Mexico. Hosted by StudyColorado, a program under the Colorado Department of Higher Education, the group was part of a U.S. Department of State EducationUSA Leadership Institute, designed to explore opportunities for capacity building and international industry-education collaboration.

First stop was at CU Denver’s ESL Academy, a modern, educational space with state-of-the-art technology that offers intensive English classes as well as classes in rhetoric and logic, vocabulary and spelling, and voice coaching and accent. The Academy offers five levels of curriculum, as well as short-term intensives for cohorts of students to study English customized to specific topics, an option that piqued the interest of several visitors. Classes take place in downtown Denver, providing access to a diverse business economy with internship and professional opportunities.

“Graduates of the ESL Academy demonstrate higher academic performance in their degree program as a result of completing the intensive five-level program,”

explained director Marcel Bolintiam. “We were honored to have such a prestigious delegation visiting our academy and look forward to welcoming their students and to forging future partnerships.”

Following their tour of the ESL Academy, the visitors walked down the block to the Business School, another building in the thriving downtown Denver CU “educational corridor”. They were greeted by Dean Sueann Ambron, who provided an overview of the leading-edge degree programs offered at the Business School, which include risk management, business analytics, global energy management, sports and entertainment management, information systems, entrepreneurship and innovation management, health administration, and more.

“As you know, especially from recent international news sources, cyber risks are growing. Risk management insurance is a major industry focus and our program prepares graduates to enter the global workforce well-prepared for this field,” said Ambron.

Ambron explained the connections between industries and education through the activities of the Business School Advisory Board.

“Companies want to engage with the Business School – they want a well qualified talent stream, to be able to provide advice on curriculum development, to teach and mentor, to provide internships, and to have a place for their leaders to interact with the next generation of business leaders.”

The visitors were treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the new J.P. Morgan Center for Commodities, which is the first of its kind to provide comprehensive research and education in commodities such as energy, minerals and agriculture.

Merrily “Missy” Kautt, Director of International Outreach and Partnerships, CU Denver Center for International Business, Education and Research (CIBER) gave an informative presentation about the Pathways to International Internships and Employment program as well as the International Business Network, a student networking organization.

The group exchanged insights and updates about the current trends and rapid changes taking place in the global energy management field with Jim Marchiore, Executive Director, GEM (Global Energy Management) program at the Business School. Marchiori’s background is in training and development in the oil and gas industry (30 years); he works with faculty members and industries to create relevant classes that include stakeholder relations and industry life cycle classes. The program requires six weekends on campus within an 18-month period; the rest of the time, the student can be anywhere in the world and work online.

“International students from a wide variety of global regions have been enrolled in this program,” explained Marchiori.

“For example, in the most recent cohort, there were students from the Arabian Gulf, China and Mexico.”

For the final presentation, the delegation shared ideas about entrepreneurship and innovation with Madhavan Parthasarathy “MP”, Associate Professor, Business School, as he updated them on activities at the Jake Jabs Center for Entrepreneurship. The Jake Jabs Center for Entrepreneurship is one of the first entrepreneurship centers to be affiliated with a university. It serves as a new idea laboratory that educates and empowers graduates and it emphasizes a multidisciplinary experiential learning, facilitated by a highly engaged faculty.

The Center’s alumni have created successful products and companies. Examples include a solar-powered light bulb and an innovative medical product, a powdered aspirin-like substance that heart attack victim can swallow and absorb immediately (this product has saved several lives.)

The morning ended in a catered lunch hosted by the Office of International Affairs, where the international visitors were able to network with deans and faculty from the university’s College of Architecture and Planning, School of Public Affairs, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and College of Engineering and Applied Science.

International Affairs: International.ucdenver.edu

ESL Academy: ESL.ucdenver.edu

Business School: ucdenver.edu/business

From A to Z, international students from 130+ countries ranging from Angola to China to Singapore to Zambia have enrolled at the University of Colorado Denver. As one of the top accredited academic and health sciences institutions in the United States, the University of Colorado Denver holds more than 40 specialized accreditation’s and offers unique options for customizing degrees. Students can choose from more than 130 degree choices such as urban design, business, engineering, pre-medicine, pharmacy, or students may also choose to customize a degree. A strong connection of processes between the offices of International Admissions, International Student and Scholar Services, and the ESL Academy provides seamless services in support of an exceptional educational experience for international students.