Daily Business Report-Nov. 8, 2017
SDSU student Brittany Jones in Ghana. Student participation in the study abroad program has increased 14 percent in the 2016-2017 academic year. (Courtesy SDSU)
SDSU Sets Record for Number
of Students Studying Abroad
By Michael Klitzing | SDSU NewsCenter
Already ranked a top-10 university for study abroad in the United States, San Diego State University has reached a new milestone. For the first time in its history, SDSU has surpassed 3,000 students participating in studying abroad in one year.
A record 3,039 SDSU students studied abroad during the 2016-2017 academic year, according to new numbers released by SDSU’s Office of International Programs. This total represents an increase of 14 percent over the university’s previous record of 2,659, set during the 2015-2016 academic year.
“More and more students are requesting international experiences, as the recent increases in study abroad indicate,” said Alan Sweedler, associate vice president for Academic Affairs – International Programs. “The main reason for this increasing demand is that students and faculty recognize its value, both educationally and personally. Spending time in other countries and participating in study and research greatly enhances the educational experience of being a student at SDSU.”
Study abroad at SDSU encompasses a broad range of international activities, including studying at a foreign university, traveling with a faculty member as part of a course or participating in internships, volunteer programs and research experiences.
SDSU was most recently ranked ninth in the nation in study abroad participation, according to the Institute for International Education’s Open Doors Report released during fall 2017, which compared 2014-2015 participation data. SDSU was the only public institution in the state of California to appear in the top 10. The new Open Doors Report rankings, which will include 2015-2016 study abroad numbers, will be published later this month.
__________________
Poll: California Voters Overwhelmingly
Oppose New Gas Tax and Fee Package
California voters overwhelmingly oppose a recent tax and fee package pushed by Gov. Jerry Brown and the Democratic-dominated Legislature to pay for road repairs, a new poll finds.
The gas tax law, which ushers in a 10-year program to raise more than $52 billion for transportation projects, is so unpopular it could backfire on Democrats in upcoming elections.
Fifty eight percent of voters oppose Senate Bill 1, including 39 percent who say they strongly reject the legislation, according to the survey from UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies. Only 35 percent favor the law, which raises taxes on gasoline and diesel and hikes vehicle registration fees to fix roads and highways.
__________________
St. Paul’s PACE Employees Accepted
into Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program
Three of St. Paul’s Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) employees have been accepted as scholars into the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program, a national program funded through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The selected scholars include Olivia Stout, Alex Hamana and Vena Valdez. All were nominated by PACE Medical Director Dr. Victor Lee. They will participate in a certificate-training program held between UC San Diego, San Diego State University and several San Diego community organizations. Scholars will have access to networking and mentoring opportunities, national meetings, and consultations with geriatrics experts during clinical training environments.
The Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program is a comprehensive geriatric training program with an emphasis on interprofessional training and team-based care. The program’s focus is on Alzheimer’s and chronic conditions that impact memory loss. The purpose of the training program is to improve the quality of healthcare for older Americans by training professionals across many disciplines on treatments and care.
__________________
ULI Nov. 14 Meeting:
Capital Markets
Urban Land Institute San Diego-Tijuana District Council will host its next breakfast meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 14, at 7:30 a.m. at the University Club atop Symphony Towers, 750 B St. in Downtown San Diego.
ULI’s program will dive deep into capital markets, focusing on where we are in the real estate cycle, investment strategies across product types and emerging trends across the debt and equity markets. A panel of experts will explore trends in capital investment and the transactions that make up the regional economy. The panel discussion will be moderated by Connie Emmitt-Stern, senior vice president of Resmark Equity Partners.
Tickets for the program range from $40 to $70. Registration after Thursday, Nov. 9 will be handled at the door and include a $10 fee. Click here to register.
__________________
Researchers Discover Promising
New Anticancer Strategy
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered a compound that in laboratory tests irreversibly stops the growth of certain aggressive, treatment-resistant tumor cells. If successfully developed into a treatment, the compound would be the first of a new class of anticancer drugs.
In their study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the TSRI researchers showed that the new compound, FiVe1, blocks the growth of tumor cells that have undergone what researchers call the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a process common in breast, colon, lung and other epithelial cell-derived tumors—known as carcinomas.
FiVe1 also blocks the growth of tumors called sarcomas, which originate from mesenchymal tissues including bone, fat, cartilage, muscle and blood vessels.
__________________
Personnel Announcements
Haley Peterson Joins Intesa Communications
Intesa Communications Group has hired former county of San Diego staffer Haley Peterson as an account manager.
Before joining Intesa, Peterson was a policy adviser to County Supervisor Bill Horn, serving as his director of community affairs for six years. She also served as liaison to the offices of the Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk and the Treasurer-Tax Collector. In this role, Haley earned numerous awards and accolades for her work with nonprofits, private business, chambers, economic development organizations, and local, state, and federal elected representatives.
Peterson graduated from the University of California, Santa Cruz with honors. She also is a graduate of CSU San Marcos’ Leadership North County program, and is credentialed by the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) for excellence in Senior Leadership for County Government.
Peterson is a member of San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Young Leaders, and recently was recognized as one of Vista’s “40 Under 40 Best and Brightest.”
Greg Godbout Joins TechFlow Inc.
Greg Godbout, a former chief technology officer of the Environmental Protection Agency, has joined TechFlow Inc. as chief digital officer.
Godbout oversaw the EPA’s critical business systems and applications and spearheaded the agency’s cloud adoption. He built a digital services and product management group supporting EPA transformation and White House initiatives and developed an acquisition program.
Godbout has been an evangelist in the government for adoption of digital services, Agile approaches and modular contracting. Achievements included developing new lines of business for the agency, engaging in business development with other agency customers to improve how federal IT services are acquired and implemented and the promotion of reusable and open platform. He was the first executive director for the General Services Administration.
