Connie and Carl Ferris Foundation Endows Summer Travel Program in International Business

A foundation begun by Connie Ferris and her late husband, Carl, helps
 WC students travel and learn first-hand about international business.

CHESTERTOWN, MD—The Connie and Carl Ferris Foundation, building on more than a decade of financial support for the Department of Business Management at Washington College, has committed $500,000 to create a permanent endowment for a summer travel program in international business.

The late Carl Ferris, who served on the College’s Board of Visitors and Governors, began his benefaction in 2000 with a $1 million gift that created the Connie and Carl Ferris Chair in Business Management. He continued to collaborate with the inaugural holder of the Ferris Chair, business professor Terrence Scout, funding programs that helped Washington College students learn about international business. And in 2006, he began supporting Dr. Scout’s growing summer-abroad program.

For the first four years of the summer program (2002 through 2005), the students travelled to Leiden University in The Netherlands for two weeks of intensive study. They compared European and American business practices and visited the manufacturing plants, offices, and training headquarters of high-profile businesses such as Nike, IKEA, Villeroy & Boch, and Heineken.

When Scout decided to take the students to China the following year, Carl Ferris stepped up with grants that made the trip affordable, and thus possible, for more students. “He was always very complimentary about the program,” says Scout. “But the idea of going to China seemed to particularly resonate with him.”

Carl Ferris was especially happy to help fund trips that enabled WC
students to explore business practices in far-flung nations such as China,
where Professor Scout's group traveled in 2008 and 2011.

Subsequent years brought trips to India and Scandinavia. This past May, 14 students visited Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. In all, some 150 students have travelled abroad with Professor Scout, who reports an ever-increasing pool of applicants.

Ferris took a personal interest in the students who participated in the program, meeting with them for lunches to talk and see presentations detailing their time abroad. “He was very generous, very gracious,” says Scout. “He wanted to see students succeed, do well, and have international experiences that were as affordable as possible.”

Following Carl Ferris’ death in 2009, his wife, Connie, and their daughter, Connie Ferris Meyer, continued the family’s generosity to the College. Now, thanks to this major new commitment from their Foundation, the Ferris Program in International Business will enjoy a long-term source of funding. The $500,000 grant, to be paid over a 10-year period, will provide annual contributions to the program while the endowment grows.

“The Ferris Program in International Business has created important opportunities for our students to learn first-hand about global business practices,” says College president Mitchell B. Reiss. “We’re delighted and grateful that Mrs. Ferris and her family, through the Foundation, have decided to make their gifts a permanent part of the College’s Business Management program.”

A native of Olean, New York, Carl W. Ferris served in the Navy during WWII and earned his degree in mechanical engineering from Cornell, where he met the woman he would marry, Connie Foley.  He retired from DuPont after 17 years in the Petroleum Chemical Division and then made his fortune in the hamburger business. Over a 23-year period, he and Connie owned and operated all the Burger King franchises in two Pennsylvania counties—Bucks and Montgomery.  They retired to Rock Hall, Md., in 1986 and became generous and involved members of the community.

For more information about the Department of Business Management, visit http://business.washcoll.edu/.

Washington College Adds Guadalajara, Mexico To Study Abroad Programs

Chestertown, MD, March 23, 2004 — In response to the growing demand from today's college students for global educational opportunities, Washington College has added the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, Mexico to its selection of 42 study abroad programs in 26 countries. The new program in Mexico offers students both formal studies and community outreach opportunities for an applied, engaged learning experience.

“This is a great program for students studying Spanish, international studies, business, or Latin American history and culture,” said Professor Tahir Shad, director of Washington College's International Studies Program. “Students should have some Spanish language skills before they go, but the school has a well-established intensive language program ready to prepare students for immersion in the university and the Mexican culture.”

Founded in 1935, Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara is the second largest university in Mexico and offers 50 undergraduate majors, including arts, international relations, economics, psychology, education, Spanish language and literature, law, engineering, and health sciences. Costs for the program are met for Washington College students through a prearranged tuition exchange program.

With a mix of cultural heritage and modernism, urban sensibilities and rural heritage, the university's hometown of Guadalajara is Mexico's second largest city, located in the state of Jalisco, which is known for its spring-like climate and as the epicenter of Mexican culture. Students can take advantage of Guadalajara's rich cultural resources and nearby attractions such as Puerto Vallarta, Chapala (the largest lake in Mexico), the town of Tequila, and the historic colonial city of Guanajuato.

While abroad, students have the opportunity to take a large array of subjects, not always offered at Washington College. The university's International Language Center is equipped with modern multimedia facilities for language instruction, and for students with a special interest in Spanish and Latin American culture, the Center offers several study options such as intensive Spanish courses, a Spanish and culture program, and Spanish courses for special purposes such as Business Spanish and Spanish for Physicians.

Housing for students, prearranged through the university's International Exchange Department, is with approved families who offer room and board to international students. By living with a family, students can practice their Spanish, learn more about Mexican culture, and experience first-hand a different way of life.

Interested students should contact Kelly Keer, Administrator of International and Diversity Affairs, at 410-778-7762, or via e-mail: kkeer2@wahscoll.edu.

New Study Abroad Program: Partnership With South Korea's Yonsei University Announced

Chestertown, MD, November 17, 2003 — As if Morocco, Japan and Costa Rica aren't exotic enough for today's students shopping for study abroad programs, Washington College is expanding their options with the addition of a new partner institution: Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea. This brings to 41 the number of programs around the globe from which Washington College students can choose. The College has partner institutions in 25 countries.

The program in South Korea enhances opportunities for students pursuing the new Asian Studies concentration. Yonsei is considered one of Korea's most outstanding teaching and research institutions, a modern, comprehensive university with colleges in liberal arts, commerce and economics, science and theology. Its independent Division of International Studies, in operation since 1985, has developed exchange agreements with more than 400 institutions worldwide. All course instruction within the Division and within the graduate school of international studies is in English. The Division of International Studies at attracts about 2,000 students from around the world.

“Yonsei University is a tremendous resource for our students, particularly those interested in the East Asian Studies concentration,” said Tahir Shad, associate professor of political science and director of Washington College's international studies program.

Andrew Slater, an international studies major who spent his high school years in Seoul while his stepfather worked there as president of Dupont in Korea, will be the first Washington College student to attend Yonsei. He leaves for Seoul in February.

“I'm really excited, because Yonsei University is the Harvard of Korea,” said Slater. “It is Korea's most highly regarded academic institution. Plus for me, it's like going home. I know the culture, the history, the language. I know my way around the city. I'll be able to get so much out of the experience now, after three years of college.” Slater expects to take courses in Korean and East Asian politics, as well as a Korean language course.

For students interested in Hispanic Studies and the concentration in Latin American studies, the College also recently established a partnership with Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, in Mexico, augmenting existing offerings in Costa Rica and Ecuador.