Jim Baker is a study in multitasking, and his job title tells the tale fairly well: vice president for research and economic development and international studies at Missouri State University.
Baker is in charge of helping to drive and fund research at the Jordan Valley Innovation Center, is involved in Brick City – a joint effort between the school, the city of Springfield and City Utilities – the development of the Robert W. Plaster Center for Free Enterprise and Business Development and works with Ozarks Public Television.
“We’ve got a lot of things going on. One of the things I’m proudest of is the expansion of the university into downtown,” Baker says, citing the continuing expansion of Brick City. “We envision that as being a 20-year kind of deal.”
He does all this while working to develop international programs, both to recruit students from other countries to and to send American students abroad.
“The thing I enjoy is the flexibility to do a lot of different things – the ‘Ozarks Watch’ television show and travel to China. I do a lot of different things,” Baker says, noting he’s particularly fond of his role with international programs.
“My favorite thing is working with a lot of the international students and also the students you send to other countries. They come back as changed people. It’s fun to watch them grow and develop,” he says.
In addition to China, Baker will be working this year to recruit students from India, Vietnam, Brazil, Chile and possibly Russia. In September 2012, the school inked a deal with its third Brazil-based school, Centro Universitario do Estado, making the schools international partner universities, and in November 2012 the university signed a Master of Business Administration transfer deal with Santiago, Chile-based University of Andres Bello.
Baker says the opportunity for students to meet and study with their international counterparts is a crucial part of their education.
“In order to get out and compete in the global economy, they need to have an understanding of other countries, other cultures,” Baker says, noting that cultural competence is a key component of the university’s public affairs mission.
MSU sent 385 students abroad in 2012 and welcomed 1,426 international students to Missourit.
“If our students here are sitting in a classroom next to a student from Brazil … they have a chance to come in contact with another culture,” Baker says.
Click here for more event information.[[In-content Ad]]
