For some time now, we have been featuring student voices on the VIU Website and Blog. It is a nice change of pace to gain faculty perspective on what makes VIU unique, and a wonderful place to study as well. One of our instructors, Jason Cherubini, talks here about his experiences teaching in the School of Business at VIU:
“Teaching at Virginia International University (VIU) is as much a learning experience for me as it is for the students. VIU is unlike other universities where a similar mix of students sits in every class; at VIU every class is different. By having to adjust and modify the lectures every semester it ensures that the material is always fresh, and I am forced to find multiple ways to explain material to best suit the different cultural learning styles.
Virginia International University (VIU) and the University American College Skopje (UACS), located in the Skopje, Republic of Macedonia entered into an Academic Collaboration on June 18, 2012, during a signing ceremony hosted at VIU’s campus in Fairfax, Virginia. The agreement focuses on on educational and scholarly cooperation between the universities, as well as in research and other mutual interests.
The agreement between the two institutions of higher education opens the door for faculty exchange, student exchange, and equally important – the exchange of scholarly thoughts and ideas in the form of research, conferences, and more. Further, the collaboration opens the door to potential joint-ventures between the universities. VIU is excited about the opportunity to work with universities beyond our borders and to engage in the promotion of higher education alongside the University American College Skopje.
Virginia International University is developing in such a dynamic way. We are improving our cooperation with other universities and educational institutions both domestically and internationally. As VIU builds concrete relationships with universities outside of the United States, we enable many prospective students to receive high quality education that fulfills their special needs. VIU representatives are putting forth a great deal of effort to expand our collaboration with universities abroad. I would like to highlight a few of the recent events VIU has taken part in overseas in recent months.
VIU in Casablanca, Morocco
At this time one of the VIU representatives Idris Ulas, Director of Marketing Department, has been attending international educational fairs in Morocco. He is also put on presentations about our programs and admission process at such events as education workshops, seminars, and many others. Mr. Ulas met about 300 students in Morocco, all of which have the unique desire to study at a U.S. University like VIU. “Young adults of Morocco are excited about VIU’s affordable tuition fee, great location, and scholarship opportunity,” said Mr. Ulas. Lastly, he sends his warm greetings to his colleagues and students at VIU from magnificent city, Casablanca in Morocco.
On March 17, 2012 the Rock N Roll Marathon Series came to Washington, DC. The Rock N Roll Race series travels around the country and allows participants to run in either a half- or full marathon. Additionally, the tour goes to parts of Europe as well. Perhaps, what is really interesting about the marathon series is that they partner with various well-known charities, including the ASPCA, St. Jude’s, Lukemia and Lymphoma Society, and Susan G. Komen to name a few. Since 1998, these charities have raised more than $266 million for their causes through the Rock N’ Roll Marathon Series! The race came to Washington this past March, and a few of VIU’s staff members were eager to be involved! Staff members Emily Leighty, Yobi Park, & Prashish Shrestha all participated in the half marathon on the 17th. Here is what they had to say about their experience in running 13.1 miles!
“The race was a great experience. We were lucky enough to be running on a perfect spring day, and the course took us by some of the monuments and other D.C. landmarks. What means the most to me is that I completed something I can really be proud of. When we signed up for the event in October I couldn’t make it one mile – let alone thirteen! This was a test of determination and endurance and dedication. Another special part of it for me was getting to know my co-workers and teammates better. Yobi and Prashish are both talking about doing it again; I haven’t decided yet if I will let them convince me to do the same. There has also been talk of signing up for a full marathon (crazy) or climbing Mount Everest (crazier). I’m hoping these ideas are the result of the adrenaline high.” – Emily Leighty
Louis Armstrong’s signature piece, “What A Wonderful World” filled the auditorium as hundreds filed in for Dr. Jennifer Bailey’s lecture “Is World Power Shifting East?” on a sunny Sunday afternoon in Silver Spring, Maryland. At the front of the auditorium, Dr. Bailey stood resplendent in a technicolor, gold-embroidered, silk sari that fully captured the rich international perspective she was about to share with her audience. Bailey, one of the Virginia International University’s (VIU) acclaimed professors, teaches graduate courses in Strategic Management, Export & Import Management and International Business for the MBA Program. Dr. Bailey is also founder and executive director of the Bailey Institute, a global organization using technology to combat illiteracy in the United States, Liberia, Nepal and Trinidad and Tobago.
Twenty students from Dr. Bailey’s Strategic Management class and 200 area residents attended the lecture. The audience was treated to a plethora of research and analysis covering seven decades: The post-world war two economic rise of the U.S.; the re-building of European economies in the 1950s; the accelerated rise of China, India, Russia and Brazil over the past two decades driven by economic globalization; the steady decline of aid-recipient countries in Africa and parts of Asia by-passed by globalization; a decade of stagnant and declining European economies stuck with again populations and un-innovative economies. To simplify the vast body of research covered, Dr. Bailey established four global perspectives for assessing the premise that world power may be shifting East.
Today marks the official beginning of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, DC! Each year, VIU students travel the short 20 miles from our university into Washington, DC to view the beautiful Cherry Blossom trees on the National Mall. For those of you who aren’t aware, those trees have a rich history. In 1912 3000 (THREE THOUSAND!) Cherry Blossom trees were gifted to the United States by Japan to commemorate the friendship between the USA and Japan. This makes 2012 the 100th anniversary of the Cherry Blossom Celebration! If you have never taken the opportunity to view the cherry blossoms in bloom, you are missing out. The entire Tidal Basin is surrounded with pink blooms that can be seen driving by or up close in person. In recent decades there is an annual Cherry Blossom Festival wherein over a million people flock to the city to view and celebrate the wonderful bond between two nations.
Virginia International University (VIU), located in Fairfax, Virginia the launch of Professional Development Workshops for Business Leaders and Academicians, designed to help prepare participants to teach and conduct business in English language settings. The Program is designed for participants who already possess a general proficiency in the English language. Our six-week program has been divided into two 3-week sessions. Participants in the workshop would attend 15 hours of class per week, for a total of 45 hours of class per session, and instruction will focus on management and leadership,
VIU is very proud to announce that MBA Student, Dixon Peters has earned his Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI). PMI is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1969. PMI has over 600,000 members and operates in approximately 185 countries worldwide. PMI is the premier institute in awarding PMP Certifications.
Project Management Professional (PMP) Certificates are the most important industry-recognized certification for project managers and demonstrate that an individual has the experience, education, and competency needed to lead projects.
We had the opportunity to sit down with Dixon and talk a bit about his experience and why he felt it was necessary for him to earn a PMP Certification:
In the past five years, the face of the global economy has seen drastic shifts. There have been major financial crises in what is generally considered the world’s top-performing countries ranging from housing market crashes, to increased unemployment rates, to unpredictability in the stock exchange, and heightened oil prices. The United States has been no exception to these change. It seems that no business has been safe, and all individuals face the daunting task of fighting for their livelihood. In the past, trends have suggested that in tough economic times it is best to invest in yourself by investing in education. The thought is as follows – If you can improve your own skill set, you can improve your resume, and therefore improve your job security, or even find some upward mobility in the job market. I heeded this advice myself and enrolled in a graduate program at a local university. I earned a Master of Arts degree in Political Science, and found it to be a refreshing experience. I gained a great deal of knowledge, along with an immeasurable amount of life experience. I also gained another very, very valuable tool that is often an indirect, unpublicized result of attending graduate school: networking. contacts. shameless self-promotion. The reasons to work towards higher education are a dime a dozen, but it seems that one of the most difficult pieces each of us have with actually seeking a college degree is how to pay for it.
