What are the connections needed to move our region forward?

I've always thought of “knowledge” as an engine that drives innovation, individual and corporate successes and economic prosperity.  And, I believe that public universities like ours have a responsibility – really a mandate from taxpayers, as well as area residents and businesses -- to partner with industry to serve the educational and training needs of existing and emerging sectors and to help ensure successful career pathways.

For the past several years we have developed some great “customized training” programs for organizations such as Kaiser Permanente, Stone Brewing Company and Tri -City Medical Center  -- providing the training that helps facilitate career growth for thousands of employees and offering certificates that articulate achievement in disciplines such as Supervising Employees and Human Resource  Management (http://www.csusm.edu/el/customtraining/index.html).

We've also established Advisory Councils to offer leadership, insight and counsel as we develop programs in Cybersecurity, Water Resource Management, Business Emergency Preparedness, Environmental Leadership and Hospitality and Tourism Management. Our Advisory Council members understand their respective business sectors as only an insider could. They help us create meaningful programs, teach courses, offer internships and practicums and establish/monitor curriculum and teaching strategies to ensure our students have a competitive advantage.  

Our Hospitality and Tourism Management advisors helped us develop a unique specialization for the MBA program that launches later this year (www.csusm.edu/mba/samba/index.html) and they’re also helping us develop a “Business of Hospitality” Professional Certificate. Industry leaders in Cybersecurity have been the driving force for an emerging Professional Science Master’s degree in this field (www.csusm.edu/el/degreeprograms/psmcybersecurity/index.html) as well as stackable certificates.

We’re reaching out to elected officials, regional business leaders and existing and prospective students to ensure that we are making the connections necessary to stay on top of career opportunities and bridge the gap between the skills that area residents have today and the knowledge base that regional employers currently have and will develop in the next few years.

Do you have an idea for a new program, partnership or area of study we ought to pursue? I’d love to hear from you at eldean@csusm.edu.

Looking Ahead.....

As we start looking ahead towards the new year, I am very excited about the opportunities I see and the direction that higher education is heading. 

I have spent a fair amount of time this past year meeting with and surveying key stakeholders in our region and internationally including current and prospective students at different stages of their career life cycle ---  as well as business and civic leaders and the deans and presidents of neighboring colleges and universities. The one message that has been clear is that we need to “think outside of the box” and create partnerships and alliances that serve a greater good.

To that end we have worked together with the City of Temecula and Mt San Jacinto College to create a “2+2” program that enables students in southwest Riverside county to start and finish a Bachelor’s degree in four years with low student-to-faculty ratios and locked tuition and fees. We have worked with local hoteliers in San Diego county to create a Hospitality and Tourism Management certificate as well a specialization within our MBA program. We have worked with local cyber security firms to develop a Professional Science Master’s in Cyber security..,, and the list goes on and on.

To support continued growth we have brought on Dr. Al Kern as interim Associate Dean and Lori Covington as Manager of Academic Programs. Dr. Kern founded the biotechnology programs here at CSUSM and has had an extremely successful career in biotech both regionally and internationally. Lori was previously at Mesa College where she was responsible for accreditation; grant writing, management and creation of successful Continuing Ed programs and Allied Health. 

I am focused on staying attuned to the work force needs of our Southern California region, both from the perspective of prospective students who are looking to advance or change careers and from the perspective of area businesses who are looking to hire a well trained workforce.  Do you have thoughts or ideas about programs or partnerships we ought to consider? Please feel free to email me at eldean@csusm.edu. I look forward to hearing from you.