Companies require relevant research to guide decisions. Students require real-world experiences. Faculty at Illinois State University foster these connections and provide the vital expertise that makes The Export Project a continuing success. The Export Project is now in the second year of a U.S. Department of Education grant to promote international business skill-building across disciplines. Student teams are actively collaborating with five Midwestern companies interested in expanding their markets overseas. This June 14 students and five faculty will travel to target countries to examine opportunities and challenges and conduct additional research culminating in a market entry plan for the partner firms.
The Export Team consists of five faculty from 4 departments and 2 colleges. Iris Varner, Peter Kaufman and Mark Hoelscher are participants from the College of Business. Their collaborators from the College of Applied Science and Technology are Klaus Schmidt and Aslihan Spaulding. This year two additional faculty are involved in the Export Project – Rick Boser and and Anu Gokhale from Technology.
Students and faculty participating this year by country are:
Poland
Faculty Leader: Dr. Klaus Schmidt
Students: Brad Harris, Matthew Coffman, Chris Wasowicz
Company: Brandt Consolidated, a producer of agricultural insecticides.
China
Faculty Leader: Dr. Peter Kaufman
Students: Cort Darby, Ross Hancock, David Yee
Company: Filtration Group, which produces filters for use in production processes in high tech and the automobile industry.
Faculty Leader: Dr. Mark Hoelscher
Students: Amber Lehmann, Kaitlin Petersen, Catherine Sorich
Company: Dickey-John, a supplier of parts for John Deere agricultural machinery and the manufacture of hand-held moisture testers.
India
Faculty Leader: Dr. Rick Boser
Students: Kelly Schneider. Susan Waltrip, Christine Wynn
Company: SunOpta, a vertically integrated producer interested in providing safe and nutritious soymilk products to India.
Faculty Leader: Dr. Anu Gokhale
Students: Julie Schumacher, Kimberly Lawton
Company: National Enrichment Industries (NEI), a company interested in selling tricalcium phosphate to India.
If you have questions about The Export Project contact Dr. Varner at izvarner@ilstu.edu.
