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Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Charting his own course: How a business degree helps this national sailor prepare for life after sport
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, national sailor Ryan Lo flew Singapore's flag in his second Olympic campaign. PHOTO: COURTESY OF RYAN LO BRANDED CONTENT Charting his own course: How a business degree helps this national sailor prepare for life after sport A flexible curriculum, engaging modules and supportive lecturers at James Cook University help to make this athlete's return to school more smooth sailing National sailor Ryan Lo is used to setting his sights on the finish line in the horizon. But last year, he chose to return to the starting line – this time, in a classroom. After nearly a decade spent mostly overseas for training and competitions, he returned to Singapore last year at age 27 to pursue a Bachelor of Business (Majoring in International Business) at the Singapore campus of James Cook University (JCU). The university's business school is one of just four in Singapore accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business – a recognition held by only six per cent of business schools worldwide. Mr Lo sees the move as a transition to prepare for the corporate world once he retires from professional sailing. Returning to his studies marked a significant shift for someone who has dedicated most of his life to sailing. Inspired by two elder siblings who were also national sailors, he picked up the sport at seven and began making waves as a teenager. Some of his recent achievements include winning gold at the Hangzhou Games in 2023 and representing Singapore at the Paris Olympics last year. Track and field athlete Shanti Pereira and Mr Lo in Paris, flying the Singapore flag high at the 2024 Paris Olympics. PHOTO: COURTESY OF RYAN LO But even with a shelf full of medals and years of experience under his belt, he knew his sporting career would not last forever. This realisation made him revisit a path he had put on hold: education. Mr Lo's academic journey has been anything but conventional. After completing his first year of junior college, he left school to focus on training for the SEA Games. He later resumed his studies in Australia, followed by a stint at a university in the Netherlands – often taking gap years to keep up with his competition schedule. 'I have taken the most different route – a prolonged one – and I have sacrificed quite a bit in my educational journey,' he says. When he returned to Singapore, he began looking for a university that could support both his academic and athletic pursuits – and found JCU. 'As athletes, we need to transition into working life after a certain age so having an education definitely helps,' he says. For Mr Lo, studying while continuing to sail competitively is not just about planning for the future – it is about finding balance in the present. With the right support from JCU, it allows him to pursue both his academic goals and sporting commitments without having to choose one over the other. Mr Lo's family welcomed him home at Changi Airport after his return from the 2024 Paris Olympics. PHOTO: COURTESY OF RYAN LO From classroom to competitions A dedicated study advisor was 'instrumental' in helping him plan his modules ahead of each term to ensure minimal clashes with training and competitions. But if he has to miss any classes due to sports commitments, he can still access assignments and lecture slides through the university's online platform. His lecturers, he says, have also been very helpful and supportive in helping him to get up to speed for any classes that he would have to miss. Mr Lo says: 'A few athletes have studied at JCU and have excelled in their education and sports. JCU has the flexibility that I would require to balance between my education and my sporting commitments.' He was also awarded the JCU Sports Scholarship. Dr Su Chun Wei, chief of High Performance Sport Institute, Sport Singapore, says: 'We appreciate Sport Excellence Education partners like JCU, who partner us to support student-athletes in pursuing both their academic and sporting ambitions. 'Balancing elite sport and education is never easy, and therefore the flexibility and support provided by institutions such as JCU through their sports scholarships make a palpable impact for our athletes to succeed.' JCU's Trimester Program also gives students the option of joining the workforce more quickly. With this, students can complete their bachelor's degree in two years instead of three. Local students, however, can choose to pace themselves by taking on fewer subjects per term and completing their course over more than two years. For Mr Lo, who previously studied business and economics in the Netherlands, his prior experience earned him a four-month exemption. He is now on track to graduate by May 2026. A melting pot of cultures Although he is nearly a decade older than most of his course mates, Mr Lo enjoys his classes and project work. He values the diverse perspectives of his international peers, who come from countries such as China, Vietnam and Germany. The diversity extends to JCU's faculty as well. 'They are very passionate about what they do and deliver their lectures in an enthusiastic, entertaining way instead of just reading off lecture slides.' One of the more memorable modules was one on business negotiation. 'It was engaging because I'm a conservative person and I don't express myself very much. This encouraged me to get out of my comfort zone.' He also found some finance modules valuable in helping him make better investment decisions. For instance, he recalls having to read up on electric vehicle company Tesla's annual reports and financial statements to churn out a financial report for a class project. 'This finance project equipped me with the knowledge to determine the different methods of valuing companies and their effectiveness,' he adds. Mr Lo still plans to sail professionally and understands that his journey is different from many of his peers who followed the conventional academic path and are already ahead in their careers. 'Everyone has his or her own journey, even more so for athletes. Learning is a continuous journey and age is not a pivotal factor. It means a lot to us athletes that there is a university here that appreciates us.' Find out more about the Bachelor of Business (Majoring in International Business) programme available at the Singapore campus of James Cook University. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump Takes Aim At B-School Faculty Diversity
Business schools had largely been flying under the radar in the first months of the Trump administration as the new president waged a culture war on diversity programs at universities and colleges across the United States. That changed significantly in the last two weeks. Days after the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business drew heavy criticism for capitulating to pressure in replacing 'diversity and inclusion' with 'community and connectedness' in its guiding principles for accredited schools, the administration's Department of Education on Friday announced an investigation into a program sponsored by the AACSB that promotes racial diversity in B-school faculty — as well as 45 universities and their business schools that are involved in it. The schools targeted by the investigation into the Ph.D. Project for allegedly engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs include Yale University, Cornell University, MIT, NYU, the University of Michigan, the Ohio State University and the University of California Berkeley. (See the full list below.) The Ph.D. Project has spent 30 years working to increase the number of underrepresented faculty in U.S. business schools, marking its three-decade anniversary in July of 2024. Its founding partners are KPMG, the global network of audit, tax, and advisory services firms; AACSB; and the Graduate Management Admission Council, the global association of leading graduate B-schools that administers the Graduate Management Admission Test, which remains the world's most widely used graduate business school assessment. LinkedIn is among the business partners that help finance the program, according to a report in The New York Times. Since its launch in 1994, the program has 'helped increase the number of Black/African American, Latinx/Hispanic American, and Native American professors, administrators, and academic leaders at colleges and universities from 294 to 1,700,' according to information available on the project's website. Of those 1,700, 1,303 are currently teaching at institutions of higher learning. 'Additionally, close to 250 members are currently enrolled in business Ph.D. programs and about 50 new student members join the Project each year. These success stories are powered by a vast network of partners, including more than 300 doctoral- and non-doctoral-granting institutions, over 40 professional associations, and dozens of corporations.' 'The Ph.D. Project is the most successful social impact initiative I've ever seen. I know this model works because I saw it play out in my own life,' says Ph.D. Project member and former AASCB board member Ian Williamson, who is dean of the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine. He continues, 'This organization is addressing a big problem today: the lack of representation in business and people studying business. We believe that when you change the people in front of the classroom, you can change the people who attend the class. The 'Role Model Effect' is extraordinarily powerful because it's built upon strong science around self-efficacy.' That doesn't sit well with President Donald Trump, whose campaign to stamp out diversity, equity, and inclusion policies caused the AACSB earlier this week to reframe its once-loud embrace of diversity and inclusion, leading to charges that the accrediting body had suffered a 'failure of leadership.' Trump's administration opposes any effort to give assistance to one racial group over another. 'The Department is working to reorient civil rights enforcement to ensure all students are protected from illegal discrimination. Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin,' recently confirmed Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in announcing the investigation into the 45 schools. 'We will not yield on this commitment.' The Times reports that the Ph.D. Project responded to the announcement of the investigation with a statement saying that it had opened its process to anyone regardless of race or ethnicity, thus complying with the administration's mandate to eliminate diversity preferences. The universities now under investigation for allegedly engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs are: Arizona State University – Main Campus Boise State University Cal Poly Humboldt California State University – San Bernadino Carnegie Mellon University Clemson University Cornell University Duke University Emory University George Mason University Georgetown University Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Montana State University-Bozeman New York University (NYU) Rice University Rutgers University The Ohio State University – Main Campus Towson University Tulane University University of Arkansas – Fayetteville University of California-Berkeley University of Chicago University of Cincinnati – Main Campus University of Colorado – Colorado Springs University of Delaware University of Kansas University of Kentucky University of Michigan-Ann Arbor University of Minnesota-Twin Cities University of Nebraska at Omaha University of New Mexico – Main Campus University of North Dakota – Main Campus University of North Texas – Denton University of Notre Dame University of NV – Las Vegas University of Oregon University of Rhode Island University of Utah University of Washington-Seattle University of Wisconsin-Madison University of Wyoming Vanderbilt University Washington State University Washington University in St. Louis Yale University DON'T MISS The post Trump Takes Aim At B-School Faculty Diversity appeared first on Poets&Quants.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AACSB Faces A Social Media Backlash Over Dropping Diversity Guidelines
AACSB CEO Lily Bi says the reframing of diversity and inclusion in the agency's guidelines are meant to protect member business schools President Donald Trump's campaign to stamp out diversity, equity and inclusion policies has caused the top global accrediting body to reframe its once loudly embrace of diversity and inclusion. The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACB) has replaced 'diversity and inclusion' with 'community and connectedness' in its guiding principles for accredited schools. The update by the AACSB follows widespread criticism of DEI efforts by Trump and his Republican allies who argue that such initiatives constitute an immense public waste and shameful discrimination.' The change reflects an about-face for the AACSB. Only six months ago, Lisa Ordóñez, Dean of the Rady School of Management at UC San Diego, expressed gratitude towards the AACSB for promoting diversity in business education, especially amid challenges to DEI programs in various states. Just last week, the University of Virginia became the latest state to abandon a DEI initiative. The university's governing board voted on Friday to dissolve the school's office of diversity, equity and inclusion. Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin, who had appointed the majority of members on UVA's Board of Visitors, praised the decision to remove the DEI office, saying the board voted for 'common sense.' 'DEI is done at the University of Virginia,' he said in a statement. Nonetheless, the AACSB retreat has sparked immediate criticism of the agency on social media. Critics argue that the change undermines efforts to promote DEI in business education education and that the AACSB is yielding to political pressures, potentially hindering progress toward more inclusive educational environments. The backlash against the AACSB has been loudest in Europe where business schools have taken the lead on ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) initiatives. Ioannis Ioannou, an associate professor of strategy at London Business School, calls the decision 'a failure of leadership.' In a post on LinkedIn, he wrote that 'business schools are responsible for shaping the next generation of leaders. What kind of message does this send? That principles are only worth defending when they are convenient? That commitments to fairness and representation can be erased the moment they become contentious? Even more troubling is the claim that the AACSB's 'mission remains the same.' If that were true, the words wouldn't need to disappear. Words matter. Commitments matter. Leadership is about standing firm in the face of pressure—not backing down when it becomes politically uncomfortable.' Adds Guido Palazzo, a professor of business ethics at the University of Lausanne: 'This is pre-emptive sycophant obedience. Isn't that a good opportunity to drop this accreditation system in Europe?' He's not the only critic to question the organization's viability. 'Time for a new accreditation body,' chimed in David Jacobs, an adjunct professor at American University and a lecturer at George Washington University. 'What next?,' asked Edward O'Connor, a lecturer & researcher at the School of Business at Maynooth University in Ireland. 'An approved list of texts and books? Time to rethink being a part of an organisation such as this!' Brian Lucey, a professor of international finance & commodities at Trinity College Dublin, was just as pointed. 'So it's back to being the AMERICAN association. Cowardly and shortsighted.' The AACSB says it made the change to mitigate legal and political risks for member schools, particularly in the U.S. states that have imposed restrictions on DEI initiatives. Despite the updated language, the agency maintains that its mission and values remain unchanged and that it continues to support inclusive educational environments. By adopting more neutral language, the AACSB hopes to protect its member business schools from potential legal challenges. In a memo to the AACSB's more than 1,000 members, the agency said the change in wording reflected 'the current legal and political environment surrounding higher education and accreditation and reframed terms that have become politicized in the US and around the world . . . with a goal to proactively mitigate risks for our members and strengthen the organisation's long-term stability'. Lily Bi, chief executive of the AACSB, told the Financial Times that 'DEI has become a very complex, evolving concept and very much politicized in the U.S.' and that the accrediting body had changed its wording to mitigate the risks for business schools in 27 U.S. states which had already imposed restrictions on DEI programs. At publication time, Bi did not respond to Poets&Quants' request for an interview. The change is sure to dominate the conversation at the organization's forthcoming annual international conference and annual meeting in Vienna next month. She added that schools 'were facing tremendous challenges with the need to comply with local laws, maintain finances and uphold AACSB accreditation. Honestly our mission doesn't change, our values don't change. We still have inclusivity and we remain committed to the substance of DEI. If somebody weaponises this concept, we don't want this weapon shooting our members. It's better than nothing. There is no future-proof solution. If you take no action, that is the worst action.' For Bi, who became CEO of the accrediting body in June of 2023, the backlash has become her most pressing challenge. Formerly an executive vice president at the Institute of Internal Auditors, Bi had to address the organization's finances. The AACSB reported record revenue of $25.7 million in 2023, the latest year for which figures are available. But its expenses that year totaled $25.6 million, also a record. The result: AACSB's revenue minus expenses plunged to $111,340 from more than $3 million a year earlier. DON'T MISS: The post AACSB Faces A Social Media Backlash Over Dropping Diversity Guidelines appeared first on Poets&Quants.
